Planet Swans ArchivesPerformances have not been good of late and indeed just 2 league wins in the last eight games have sent the Swans tumbling from the comfort of the play off zone to close on mid table with gap between them and the sides chasing promotion growing match by match. A lack of goals has been the main downturn with only 9 goals in the last 14 league matches compared with 28 in the first 13 league games of the season. Defensively we have conceded 14 in the last 14 games – compared to 18 in the first 13 showing that we have tightened up at the back but is that at the cost of goals at the other end. Points wise, the last 14 games have yielded just 15 points compared to 26 in the first 13 games. 9 of those 14 games have failed to see us hit the target compared to just 3 of the first 13 games. Pretty damning statistics I am sure you will agree.
Most fans will accept that performances like those seen in the last few weeks will see us fare no better than mid table come May. Discussions are increasing on the effectiveness of our manager and the formations that he insists on playing whilst the entertainment factor seems to have long vanished from the Vetch Field.
Most on here will know my feelings when we appointed Brian Flynn during the course of last season but before I continue with this article I also add that I am not advocating a change of manager at this point in time. With 19 games to go there is no point as I can only see that hindering our performance this season rather than helping it but where has it all gone wrong since those enjoyable days of August and September.
It’s easy to point to injuries and it is hard to dispute that we have had bad luck with injuries this season. Key men have been missing from action at any one time and the players coming in just don’t have the same effect on the performances. That aside the injury problems in the main have cleared up over the last month and yet the standards of play have become worse?
To me it is clearly the formation and tactics that we have been employing. Brian Flynn is an advocate of this lop sides 4-3-3 formation that we have seen in action. Maylett hugs the right touchline but the three in midfield (whoever they are) seem to fall over each other in the centre and no-one makes the same space as Maylett on the other side of the pitch. It also leaves us exposed on the left hand side of the park as Michael Howard has found out several times this season to our cost along with Leon Hylton and Lenny Johnrose yesterday. It is causing us problems at the back and as far as I can see it adds nothing to the way that we are creating chances up front. We insist on playing Kevin Nugent who deserved his place at the start of the season but is becoming a liability to the team. With him in the side we constantly lump a high ball to him and he wins very little. Even when he wins it how many times does it find one of our players? Lee Trundle thrives off the ball being played into him for control not looking for snippets that may or may not fall off his strike partners head.
We have tried Thomas as a replacement for Nugent but the games saw the same high ball and that will never suit Thomas. It’s not his game to be a target man up front and I am at a loss to think why we started to revert to that game – we have tried it in the past and rarely has it brought us any form of success. Brad Maylett has lost the ability (or the will) to take his defender on – something which he did with ease at the start of the season and he should be questioned as to why. Has he been instructed not too or has he just got a confidence crisis that makes him think he cannot do it? I don’t know.
Leon Britton is nowhere near the player he was last season or even the beginning of this. He makes some runs but he is not creating chances the way that he was last season. Something is missing there and again this should be pinpointed and corrected (by that I mean it should have by now)
Andy Robinson is playing reasonably well but again with this formation he is not playing a game that looks natural to him as the three in midfield become bunched up again almost getting in each others way.
Defensively we are not brilliant but have tightened up and this is of less cause of concern to me than the attacking part of our game having kept 8 clean sheets in the last 14 games – not bad defensive form.
To me it all comes down to the formation – whether that is a reason for the loss of form of key players or not I am not sure. However, the formation for me clearly is not working and this needs to be addressed. We all know that the formation is the choice of our manager but has he the ability, the will or the desire to see this change? You judge for yourself.
Personally I still think we have the players here that can mount a challenge but I think the skills that some of them possess are being wasted with this ridiculous lop sided formation. We are lacking the ability to create from both sides and we have been sussed and people are stopping us playing because we are predictable – this is where the manager needs to change it.
Is Brian Flynn the man to take Swansea forward? We asked the same question on the message board and by clicking the link below you will read four arguments that we think were the best ones that answered the question.
My final comment though has to be based around the “look where we were last season” comments – its history and should be buried that way. The team we have now is unrecognisable from the side that got us into that position last year. We have invested heavily and we should be judging these on what they are capable of and not what some team of has beens did last season surely?
