Phil SumblerSteve Cooper was in particular cliche bingo mood on Sunday morning as he prepared his side to try and put the disappointment of three straight defeats behind them and focus on the job in hand which is the visit of Preston to the Liberty on Monday afternoon.
Defeats to Bournemouth, Cardiff and Birmingham have left the Swans looking up at both Watford and Norwich and hoping that one of them will have the similar turn around in fortune that we need if we are to secure an automatic promotion spot.
Sadly for us the chances of either of those turnarounds look increasingly unlikely with Watford continuing to win games and the Swans becoming not just devoid of points but devoid of serious goal chances that could even give some glimmer of hope that things could turn around.
So it will be with some frustrations that we hear the same words from Steve Cooper ahead of the game when sometimes it is best to just say nothing at all and let your reaction be seen on the pitch. We were going to see a reaction to Bournemouth but we didn’t. After the international break we were going to see a reaction against Birmingham but we didn’t. So you can probably forgive even the most optimistic Swansea fan if they think that Preston is just about to be the same old same old.
Cooper was talking via the club’s official website when he said “It’s three losses and three without a goal, but we’ve got to not lose confidence or start questioning
“The more points you drop now, it will get tougher and tougher as there’s less games to play. The three points become more and more important now, and we’re well aware of that.
“We are disappointed with this result, but we’ve got to make sure we draw a line under it and get ready for the next one. We have got to start working harder and prepare for Monday.”
It seems an absolute age since a 1-0 win at Preston on the opening day of the season got the campaign off to the perfect start and it had seemed as little as just 8 weeks ago as if it was a season that could easily end with a top flight promotion once again. But five defeats in ten games has dampened all that optimism and now it is simply a case for the team that can prove they can deliver rather than the one that says that they would like to.
Over to you lads.
