Duff set to hand starting debuts to four?

Michael Duff has had a busy time as Swansea City manager with six new faces already arriving in SA1 since he did which gives him some decisions to take as he prepares his first team selection in a competitive fixture as Swans boss.

Carl Rushworth, Josh Key, Harrison Ashby, Mykola Kuharevich, Jerry Yates and Josh Ginnelly are all new faces to the club this summer with most of them anticipated to take part in the matchday squad today which is no real surprise given that nine substitutes can now be named in a matchday squad.

Five of those substitutes can be used in a game with teams having three opportunities to make changes (with a fourth at half time) so there is every real chance that we will see multiple Swans debuts today as the season finally arrives with the visit of Birmingham CIty.

The challenge for the new Swans boss is which ones of his new recruits that he hands a starting debut to and for me the numerical answer will be four.

Carl Rushworth has not arrived in Swansea to be a back up keeper.   Known well to Martin Margetson from his time with the international set up in England, Rushworth will be our first choice keeper this season.   That maybe tough on Andy Fisher who put together a good run of form at the end of last season.   I just cannot see any stage where Rushworth is on the bench waiting for his chance and that for me means I think he will start the game between the sticks.

Duff was certainly full of praise for his new keeper earlier in the week “Carl has been on a good development curve. He has been at Walsall and then at Lincoln, I have spoken to Mark Kennedy and Matt Taylor, the managers who had him at those respective clubs, and they had very high praise for him.

“Also, we trust Marge (Margetson). It has been a signing where we have taken a lot from his input, because he is the England goalkeeping coach for very good reason.

“He believes Carl has a very good temperament and has got the opportunity and potential to be a really good goalkeeper.”

Josh Key will be the second starting debutant.  His arrival from Exeter happened very early on in pre-season and, of course, he was a Swans target earlier this year.   He will take his place in the line up for the Swans wearing the number 2 shirt he has been handed.

Key certainly believes that he is up for the challenge “I am really looking forward to it, it’s exciting,” he said.

“The difference between League Two and League One is not huge, but the jump to the Championship is big.

“You look at the teams who are in this division, it’s like a mini Premier League.

“Training has been tough, but I want to grow and push myself because the environment and the players here are top. I always want to improve a lot and be part of a good team.”

Jerry Yates will be the third starting debutant.   Michael Duff has shown his intention to play him up front alongside Piroe in the pre-season games and I don’t see a position where that changes now that the league action is here.

Speaking after his first goal for the club last week at Reading, Yates said “I’m looking forward to the first home game, I’m sure the lads are looking forward to it and we can’t wait to get going.

“I don’t mind settling in somewhere new. For some people it might take time, but for me it’s something I enjoy. The lads are unbelievable and the staff and players have been excellent with me so far.”

And finally I can see a starting berth for Harrison Ashby.  His signing may have only been formally confirmed yesterday but this has trained with the squad since he successfully completed his medical on Monday afternoon and posed for the traditional signing shots.  He is another one of those loan players who has come here to play first team football and that will start in the very first game.

Ashby was in a buoyant mood yesterday after his signature was announced “I’m a right-back or full-back. I can play left-back, which I know some people will be happy to hear!

“I’m feel I’m very attacking. Scoring goals is what everyone wants to do in football and since a young age, I’ve always wanted to score goals. I started off as a number 10, so scoring goals and assisting is something that I want to do.

“I want to bring that to my game here.”

For Kuhharevich he will need to be content with a place on the bench but Swans fans will almost certainly see him in action at some point today whilst it is not unconceivable that Josh Ginnelly will take the number of debuts in this particular game to six.

Outside of those four starting debutants, it isn’t entirely obvious to name the Swans line up but we can see a starting selection as below as Duff looks to start his competitive matches with a win in front of a sizeable home crowd.

Predicted Starting XI: Rushworth, Key, Darling, Cabango Wood, Ashby, Grimes, Ntcham, Fulton, Piroe, Yates.

“It’s nice to have some fresh faces, young players that want to come here and develop and be a part of what we are trying to do,” said the Swans boss.