Phil Sumbler
After all the planning and preparation that we were told started back in September and after thirty-one days of the transfer window, the close of play yesterday saw us end in a position where the squad was not improved during January.
We have talked during the course of the month about the club making a statement of intent but the play out of the window was the loudest statement that we needed to hear in that we managed to get no signings over the line. Unless of course you count loan recalls or a new player for the Under-21s.
Russell Martin’s team are within touching distance of the play-offs but that was not enough to persuade anyone that inputs to the finances at the club that they could get new players in to boost that play-off push. Simply put there was no ambition to try and drive the club forward.
When Julian Winter and Russell Martin talked about early planning for this window identifying potential targets and looking to move early in January I think most believed that we could actually deliver on those statements. However, it took the late failure to get a deal over the line for Karlan Grant to highlight just how much of a shambles this window was for the club.
There can be little doubt that the post mortems inside the club should go on and it seems almost inevitable that there is likely to be departures from the club as a direct result.
It is difficult to comprehend how Russell Martin must feel this morning? Has he been lied to? Have their been broken promises? Or was the “company line” he was trotting out just words to placate the media in the hope that maybe someone behind the scenes would change their mind.
The usual silence of the ownership group is deafening in its absence as they oversee another window where accusations of continually holding out for a better deal is stopping transfers coming over the line. That accusation was thrown at them over the interest that we had in Chiedozie Ogbene where the suggestion was that everything was just about agreed until there was intrusion from across the pond.
On the outgoings we have Michael Obafemi, Jamie Paterson and Morgan Whittaker all who reportedly have refused to play for the club in the past few months for a variety of reasons. We managed to get Obafemi out but he went just on loan (although the deal to make that permanent we are told is just about guaranteed) but Paterson and Whittaker are still here which will be a test for the man management skills of Martin otherwise we are left with players sat on the fringes.
We have seen some poor windows in the past but this one has topped each and every one of them. The only positive is that we managed to avoid last minute panic signings (was Grant heading to be one of them?) but that’s a positive that doesn’t really matter – right now we are in a worse position then we were when we came into the window.
The Swans will return to league action on Saturday when Birmingham visit SA1. The visitors have lost their last five league games but must surely be bouyed by the fact they are not facing any new players with points to prove. This is a weaker Swansea squad than the one that has won two of the last fourteen. And anybody that was part of the group that was tasked with managing the January transfer window has to take their share of the blame. It simply was not good enough.
The fans now have a total right to know what has happened behind the scenes. How can a professional football club, after more than four months of planning and having a four and a half week window fail to get a single signing over the line? Clearly we had the desire to try but we failed. And failed on more than one occasion. Grant, Ogbene, Cornick, Gelhardt and Key were all names linked with us this window and there were more. All wake up this morning as registered players elsewhere.
Since the ownership change at the club in 2016 there has been much criticism aimed at the ownership group and whatever you think of that in the past right now that criticism is due and justified and they must be accountable for the window that was January 2023.
We await to hear.
RM :Good news Pato cant wait to get going !
Indeed a poor window. One positive is that Latibeaudiere, Piroe and Manning didn’t leave. I guess if Rangers had come in with an acceptable bid last week then we would have used that for the planned deals noted above.
Would we have though? Thats supposition – there is little to suggest that we have the nous to get a deal over a line at the moment?
You wonder what effect this will have on the players and obviously the manager .I watch the under 21 regularly and there are no stand -out players as we had fiv or six years ago .The only plus at the moment is the return of Whitaker yet you wonder what his attitude will be and indeed does Russell Martin really believe in him.It is hard to accept that given all the confident talk by the manager re the positions that needed filling for us to attack the play offs that we couldn’t sign a single player.
Add to that the fact that we have to play Fisher in goal for the near future . It could turn nasty in the next few weeks but will any of it affect the Yanks ? Sadly no .They will only leave when there is no more cash to be cleaned off .
The reasons /excuses for the complete failure of the transfer window is going to be tough to take – especially when none of it will come first hand from across the pond.
Ambition Is Critical !! Surely at the rate players have left over a good few years and positions not replaced or strengthened. It doesn’t really matter the manager, the board, owners need to stop messing around and put hands in pockets or slide down the leagues like so many other clubs in the past!!
Yes it is about time the fans stood up to Levien & Kaplan and tell them to go them two have bled our club dry with no investment coming in that was the sole reason they bought the club for is to make money out of it they would rather invest money into the other club they own in DC United and are not doing a good job there as far as I can see bottom of the league that shows much they know about football talk about getting the Glazers out of Man Utd the fans should be doing the same here at the Swans in what they have done to our club leeches the two of them in keeping the shareholders happy .
Utter crap all this rubbish about r months looking at this player looking at that player is just to shut us the fans up there was no interest in bringing anyone in just told to cut the wage bill
If Russell Martin has any ambitioh HE should move on. In my view talk of getting to the play-offs is daft as we are just no good enough. Just imagine how we’d fare in the Prem League with the current squad. What I’d really like to know is what the long term plan is for promotion. Is it 5, 10, 15 or more years ?
How long would a decent coach stick around with such limited ambition within the Club ?
The yanks have no interest in the club, never have, and Jenkins knew this, but chose to sell to the yanks, only because he could line his own pockets.
Embezzlement, corruption, it’s all been going on behind the scenes, in my opinion.
If Martin was to walk, who could blame him.
Well said Morgan n Jenkins have alot answer too selling to these pair wankers that has ever been involved in our club petty was out in front but these pair fuking clowns 🤡 full shit we need them sell up n fukoff
I look at this shambles of a window and I look no further than The Chief Executive Officer Julian Winter. He is the person who is solely responsible for the day to day running of the club. He is the person who got rid of/persuaded them to leave competent and highly rated recruitment and back room staff already at the club. He brought in some people previosly at Sunderland and took sole responsibility for handling transfers! Whilst there may be other gripes, look no further, than Julian Winter. He is incompetent at handling transfers, period.
Look at his history at Huddersfield. He joined them as they headed into the Premiership (the work was already done). In 3 years at them again replacing back room staff with his own appointments he almost took Huddersfield from Premier to league 1. History is repeating itself. They stabilised after he left.
Budget is only one aspect and once set it is down to Execution.
I look at this shambles of a window and I look no further than The Chief Executive Officer Julian Winter. He is the person who is solely responsible for the day to day running of the club. He is the person who got rid of/persuaded them to leave competent and highly rated recruitment and back room staff already at the club. He brought in some people previosly at Huddersfield and took sole responsibility for handling transfers! Whilst there may be other gripes, look no further, than Julian Winter. He is incompetent at handling transfers, period.
Look at his history at Huddersfield. He joined them as they headed into the Premiership (the work was already done). In 3 years at them again replacing back room staff with his own appointments he almost took Huddersfield from Premier to league 1. History is repeating itself. They stabilised after he left.
Budget is only one aspect and once set it is down to Execution.
After 50 years of support this is hard to take. Got to be the worst ever window. I think all the fans should go on strike, everybody else is. Martin should walk if he has got any sense of ambition.
We are in danger of losing yet another rising manager. Our 2 previous good managers are now managing in the Premiership The buck stops at the Chief Executive Officer. He hasn’t dealt with 3 players who do not put the club first. Get their wages off the books aund use these wages to pay players who will give 100% to the club. What happened to our recruitment process of many years where we not only assessed players on ability but also on suitability for the club.
Are manager needs to go anyway.all he wants to do is old onto the ball .heard him say it all game at home in FA cup 2.1 down all you could hear was don’t shoot.as for Whittaker Martin didn’t like him soon as he came .sent him out on loan straight away.
Danger of losing another rising manager?.You have to be kidding!.Look at his record at mk dons and with us.
What a joke as his football style (side to side and back).
Yes he was brought in on the cheep and has not got a clue on how to manage a team in the Championship and the managers that have left our club well they could see the writing was on the wall then knowing that there was no investment coming in from them two of Levien and Kaplan bought the club to make money out of it we could see that in the players they have sold and not one penny was spent on bringing new players in it all went into they’re pockets a pair of leeches them two .