Testing Times 08/27/2009
 
What a strange time to be a Swansea fan. After a few years of steady but spectacular progression, I think this is all hitting us very hard.

The Akinfenwa/Trundle story is a bolt from the blue, especially given the fact that Akinfenwa looks to be a permanent acquisition.

I know there are those that don't want to see Trundle back, and in fact I am one of those. I prefer to think of him as he was when at his best for us, not the sluggish shadow he has been at Bristol. But, I can at least UNDERSTAND why he is rumoured to be joining us in the short-term.

Undoubtedly amongst many fans, rightly or wrongly his arrival would cause excitement and a boost in ticket sales and support for Saturday's game. And maybe, just maybe there'll be a twinkle of those Magic Daps. Probably not, but football has produced far stranger fairytale stories, and the board and management will be aware of this potential.

As for Akinfenwa, that is the story that really shocks me. Yes, he has scored 24 goals in 56 games for Northampton, mainly at League One level, which is an excellent return for a Centre forward of his ilk. However, clubs are not banging down the door for his signature, and while I enjoyed his effort and ability while he was at the Swans, purchasing a player who has never played at this level is a huge gamble given that the fans are demanding progression, and that this is a player who they have seen before.

Akinfenwa lest we not forget forged a highly prolific partnership with Lee Trundle in the early months of the 2005/06 season, but following that was used mainly as a substitute to whom long balls were punted in the direction of. Paulo Sousa has maintained he wants to continue the style of football Roberto Martinez had the Swans playing, so it is quite difficult to see how Akinfenwa will fit into that.

Perhaps it is just a story. Often you hear players haven’t heard of the interest from a club until they pick up a paper themselves, in which case a lot of Swans fans will have a good laugh. But when there are young, hungry attackers like Jermain Beckford, Carl Baker and Simeon Jackson knocking in goals at the level directly below ours, it is easy to see why some fans are frustrated at our perceived lack of ambition.

Me? I always try to wait and see how things pan out before I judge any (perceived) transfer dealing. The signing of Besian Idrizaj looks by and large to be an excellent signing in the long term, but if Akinfenwa and Trundle sign on the dotted line, it suddenly starts to seem like Swansea are desperate, and in trouble.

After all, we have raked in a lot of money this summer be it from transfers, compensation, or extra TV money, and if we are able to keep players like Ferrie Bodde on our books, then we must be offering decent wages. However, no names have come in to capture the imagination of the fans, and none seem to be on the horizon, and unevitably that leads to questions in some corners.

Couple this story with the events of Tuesday night and indeed it’s easy to see why some fans are panicking. Some fans are unequivocally 110% behind the board and team and seem frustrated by those amongst us who question everything that the board/Sousa/players are doing.

However, that doesn't mean those who question everything love or care for the club any less than others, nor are they Cardiff fans. They have perhaps a little less faith than others and it is understandable given the way Martinez discarded of us this summer.

We live in a sensationalist culture, which means that reactions following victory/defeat are almost always over the top. On top of that, given the amount of reports, footage, statistics and opinion available to the average fan; it is easy to argue almost anything. 

What must be said is this. Paulo Sousa, Huw Jenkins and the board have no reason to want anything other than the best for Swansea City FC. Sousa has come in at a time when expectation is unrealistically high given the injury situation, and where it appears the financial situation isn’t all it’s cracked up to be either. 

Jenkins and the board have appointed 5 managers since they took over. Cusack was a bad appointment which was recognised and Brian Flynn replaced him and accomplished his mission. Flynn refused to move to Swansea and Jackett replaced him, and Jackett took us to the next level and almost beyond. Martinez replaced him and we finished 28th in the Football League out of 92. We all know where we were when they took over.

So, let’s keep the faith and see how the next month pans out. There seems to be a fair amount of optimism regarding Dobbie, and once we have everyone fit we can look forward to a Starting XI of:

              De Vries

Rangel   Monk   Williams   Tate

               Bodde
      Pratley   Britton/Allen
Dyer                             Gower
               Dobbie

 

 
You can guarantee Saturday’s XI will be very different, so that XI will need our support more than ever, even if it includes ‘Bayo’ and a certain pair of ‘Magic Daps’.

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So the Football League season is once again upon us and my beloved Swansea City once more lost its opening day fixture.

In all fairness, I've been used to it over the past few years. Cheltenham (home), Oldham (away), Charlton (away) and now Leicester have all managed to dampen the good mood each and every football season is greeted with.

No-one was more disappointed with the result than me, but it is incredible how supporters can jump on a new manager’s back so quickly. 

This weekend you had Norwich’s devastating capitulation against Colchester at home, where they were crushed 7-1. Bryan Gunn the Norwich City legend had to watch as one fan threw his season ticket in his face 25minutes into the new season, and 4-0 down. There is no professional who cares about Norwich as much as Gunn, and you can bet no-one was hurting more than him, but try telling the fan that.

Paulo Sousa watched his first game as Swans boss go swimmingly for 30minutes. Swansea controlled the tempo; got the opening goal and then everything went wrong. A penalty conceded (albeit it was saved) and 2 goals in 3 second-half minutes meant Sousa’s debut was much more of a miss than a hit. Cue the histrionics across the message boards from the fans.

And they call it the greatest job sector in the world. Because while fans of football clubs across the world dream of working within football as a manager, a player or whatever, there is no way any of us can understand what it is like to be watched by tens of thousands of people while you do your job. For the first time. Replacing a man who did an incredible job for a club that a short time ago was on its knees.

I can only imagine it isn’t too easy.

Deprived of 2 of the first choice midfield (Bodde and Pratley), and a third (Allen) 25 minutes into the game, Sousa’s job of masterminding victory against a team and club on the rise after a tough 2 years was made all the more difficult. For a side that relies so heavily on the mobility and functionality of its midfield, Swansea will always struggle unless the central midfield trio does its job. And, shorn of 3 of the 4 players who have controlled the midfield for the Swans over the past 2 years, it proved a task too much for their deputies. So, with Bodde, Allen and Pratley all set to return within a month, is there the need to panic?

As far as I can see, no, there isn’t. 

Paulo Sousa has expressed his disappointment at not already having a striker in place, and rumours that a central defender be a second priority means that the men in charge are acutely aware of the problems the starting XI face. By all accounts Saturday’s display lacked a playmaker and a goalscorer: Gomez and Scotland. 

Bodde will slot back into the Swansea XI with little trouble and begin pulling strings and scoring goals come September, and you can bet by then the Swans faithful will have a new striking hero with whom they can celebrate goals.

It is tough for Swans fans right now. Still reeling from Martinez’s departure (not Scotland and Gomez’s), it’s easy to see why their faith has been tested having been abandoned by the man who said he never would. But Sousa is a footballing man. Nothing but positive words have come out of the dressing room and no one has anything but praise for the only man to win back-to-back Champions League titles.

So, let’s keep the faith and roar our team on, starting with a good display and some goals v Brighton, tomorrow night. And, if you feel the nerves creeping in, and the doubts nagging – imagine how much harder your job (whatever it may be) would be, if you were just starting it, and getting booed.