Phil SumblerThe Swans surprise this weekend at the recall of Ethan Laird by Manchester United could force a tactical re-think but certainly gives Russell Martin something to think about at the front end of the transfer window and is proof that the best laid plans can often need a change.
The news that broke yesterday afternoon was that United were recalling Laird with a view to sending him out on loan for the second half of the season to Bournemouth. A higher loan fee and a bigger proportion of wages was suggested to be some of the decision but also the fact that Bournemouth are pushing at the top end of the table with an extra rumour suggesting that Laird could stay on the south coast for a further twelve months if their promotion campaign is successful.
The Swans were said to be told of the likely outcome for Laird on Friday and whilst much of the ground work had been done on our plans for this particular window it will have been a weekend of consideration for Martin and the team around him as they come to terms with the loss of someone who added much to the team although many have pointed to his loss of form in recent weeks (the same could easily be said for most of the squad over the same period)
The obvious solution will be to go and look for a wing back. Could Martin look for another Premier League loan to replace Laird. His “go to” within the squad has been Joel Latibeaudiere to take the place of Laird but I think we all would accept that this is not a long term solution for the position and therefore something has to happen.
An obvious change could be to revert to a more traditional four at the back. He has Kyle Naughton in the squad who we know can do a very good job for us at right back and this would maybe give us more options in midfield. In recent weeks Martin has hinted that he may look to adapt his side to accommodate both Piroe and Obafemi and reverting to a back four could make that happen.
Changing that tactic would surely also allow him to play both Grimes and Downes in the same side giving him options perhaps with midfielders offering more width (Ntcham and Paterson) and giving a more fluid and less defensive feel to the side? These will surely be points under consideration for Russell Martin as he looks at what he can do next.
Of course while this is not the news that Martin will have wanted we could also draw some conclusions that there is always a plan b as far as a season long loan is concerned. As we have seen before (Morgan Gibbs-White anyone?) a recall can always be triggered in January and whilst we may not have expected this one we may have already done some level of planning for this eventuality.
The next few days will now be interesting to watch. If weekend reports are to be believed then Andy Fisher will be here before the weekend and departures are expected within the same period with Jay Fulton and possibly Yan Dhanda both rumoured to be on their way out this week.
The return of Laird is a definite blow for the Swans but the good news from our perspective is it happened at the start end of the window and isn’t one of those last minute decisions that can leave you light at the end of the window.
Over to you recruitment team.
