Ash And Fede Are The Best

Williams return will link him back up with Federico Fernandez with whom he has formed such a solid centre back pairing over the last year or so since Fernandez arrived in Wales from Napoli.

Whilst Williams was playing for Wales against Cyprus and Israel last week, Fernandez was in Italy watching Lewis Hamilton win the Italian Grand Prix as he is not currently in the Argentinian squad with whom he played in the World Cup last year.

And linking the two of them back together is always a satisfying moment for Monk who believes that they are amongst the best centre back pairings in the division at the moment.

With Lukasz Fabianski behind them the Swans had an exceptionally solid defence last season and despite just one clean sheet so far this term in the league they have dealt with much that has been thrown at them so far and are clearly a big part of the reason why we are flying so high in the league.

“I think Ash and Fede, at this moment in time, are probably one of the best partnerships in the league with the way they performed together this season,” said Monk.

“Ashley himself has to be up there as one of the top three or four centre-backs in the league with the way he contributes every game, the way he leads the group, his experience.

“The most important bit, which is key for any defender, is how consistent you are.

“It’s not just about the amount of games he’s played, it’s the level of performance so he should be really proud of that.

“It’s very hard to be that consistent, it’s the hardest thing for any defender.”

Monk confirmed at last night’s fans forum that despite speculation almost every transfer window linking Ash with a move away that there has never been a firm offer for his captain and we as Swans fans will clearly hope that is always the case.

“He gets linked here, there and everywhere like a lot of our players have done over the years, but he’s always remained very focused and committed” added Monk.

“I don’t see that changing in the future.”

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