Points Lost

KVetch

Key Player
Public warning don't read if you're sensitive to infuriating football statistics or management. Here are the points lost from giving up late goals I promised.

I went back on all 39 matches to date this season. We have given up late goals after the 70' mark a total of 10 times for 20 total points lost. In contrast we have scored late goals in 3 matches to earn 6 points. If we had the 20 points we would be on top of the table at 76 points. That's 2 points clear of Leeds. If you took away the matches we scored late and added 14 points we would be 3rd place only 1 point behind West Brom and 4 ahead of 4th place Brentford. Easily a playoff spot and in a very good position for automatic promotion.

Some of these late goals were killers in extra time. A total of 6 games the goals scored against us were after the 90' mark. In contrast we had 2 extra time goals and an Ayew goal against Luton which came at the 82' mark. This is not bad luck, this is a serious managing issue. Once we gain a lead we have completely stopped our attack and tried to hold a 1 goal lead all on defense. I get that you want to preserve a lead but that is not the way to do that. You must continue to attack because that is the reason you are winning in the first place. Cooper should have put a stop to this much sooner. It's been a problem since September. It happened 4 times in February out of 7 matches. We had 7 points out of a possible 21 that month. It's a true shame when we started the season with 5 wins and a draw and were top of the table.

A total of 30 out of 39 of our matches have been either a draw or a 1 goal difference. 2 of the 9 that weren't were 1-5 losses against QPR and West Brom. Our biggest wins were 3-0 victories over Birmingham and recently Middlesborough. We would be in a playoff promotion spot if Cooper had put out this fire sooner.

31.8.19 - Leeds Routledge 90' goal Swans W 1-0 Points won:2
2.11.19 - Wigan Surridge 90+2' goal Swans W 2-1 Points won:2
21.12.19 - Luton Ayew 82' goal Swans W 1-0 points won:2

14.9.19 - Nottingham Semedo 85' goal Swans L 0-1 Points lost:2
28.9.19 - Reading - Yiadom 90' goal Swans D 1-1 Points lost:2
5.10.19 - Stoke Hogan 90' goal Swans L 1-2 Points lost:2
19.10.19 - Barnsley Mowatt 70' goal Swans D 1-1 Points lost:2
9.11.19 - Sheffield - Fox 90+1 goal Swans D 2-2 Points lost:2
8.2.20 - Derby Lawrence 80' goal Swans L 2-3 Points lost:2
14.2.20 - Hull Eaves goal 90+5' Swans D 4-4 Points lost:2
26.2.20 - Fulham Mitrovic 90+4' goal Swans L 0-1 Points lost:2
29.2.20 - Blackburn Johnson 90+5' goal Swans D 2-2 Points lost:2
27.6.20 - Luton Collins 72' goal Swans L 0-1 Points lost:2
 

jackodiamonds

Set-Piece Specialist
Staff member
These are great stats, thanks for making the effort. It does highlight a huge tactical problem with regards the Swans giving up the initiative far too early, and I completely agree with the part where you said
You must continue to attack because that is the reason you are winning in the first place.
That's absolutely true and is the one aspect of the Swans play that frustrates me the most. Especially considering most of the talent in this squad is in the attacking ranks. However the fact Swansea are able to get themselves in a winning position so often in the first place is still a positive. If Cooper had been able to fix these late lapses, and Swansea were sitting pretty in 3rd, everyone would be happy.

Like everyone else, I'm not happy with what I've been seeing (or more often hearing, thanks to stupid Brit TV regulations) and I think @CroJack 's assessment on another thread sums up the state of the Swans play perfectly. But is Cooper at least doing some stuff right for Swansea to even be in the position to throw away points to begin with? Is the whole problem - and the origin of CroJack's deeply unflattering stats - that once the Swans are ahead, Cooper is trying to play defensively with a team that's not built to defend?

Barring relegation, I don't think there's any chance the board will fire Cooper and have another manager payoff amortisation on the books. He's on contract for another 2 seasons, so I'm trying to find the positives he can build on.
 

Borini

Key Player
These are great stats, thanks for making the effort. It does highlight a huge tactical problem with regards the Swans giving up the initiative far too early, and I completely agree with the part where you said


That's absolutely true and is the one aspect of the Swans play that frustrates me the most. Especially considering most of the talent in this squad is in the attacking ranks. However the fact Swansea are able to get themselves in a winning position so often in the first place is still a positive. If Cooper had been able to fix these late lapses, and Swansea were sitting pretty in 3rd, everyone would be happy.

Like everyone else, I'm not happy with what I've been seeing (or more often hearing, thanks to stupid Brit TV regulations) and I think @CroJack 's assessment on another thread sums up the state of the Swans play perfectly. But is Cooper at least doing some stuff right for Swansea to even be in the position to throw away points to begin with? Is the whole problem - and the origin of CroJack's deeply unflattering stats - that once the Swans are ahead, Cooper is trying to play defensively with a team that's not built to defend?

Barring relegation, I don't think there's any chance the board will fire Cooper and have another manager payoff amortisation on the books. He's on contract for another 2 seasons, so I'm trying to find the positives he can build on.
The positives Andy Pandy can build on are in the Lego box.
( And welcome back stranger!)
 

CroJack

Key Player
But is Cooper at least doing some stuff right for Swansea to even be in the position to throw away points to begin with? Is the whole problem - and the origin of CroJack's deeply unflattering stats - that once the Swans are ahead, Cooper is trying to play defensively with a team that's not built to defend?
Being ahead is not a problem for the Swans. When we score first we win more often than not. So, we know how to defend the lead. But, when opposition score first, we are doomed. We can't break well organised defences, and we are vulnerable to counter-attacks.

@jackodiamonds said: "However the fact Swansea are able to get themselves in a winning position so often in the first place is still a positive."

Not so often, we have been more in a losing position this season. Exactly, 18 times in a losing position, and 15 times in a winning position. We have played six 0:0 draws.

Here I've made a chart with losing/winning positions and the final result. Only in the beginning of the season we managed to win a couple of games when we where behind.

WinLosePosition.png
Playing against Swans is relatively easy: press high, score first, defend, and counter-attack. This is structural, and it's the manager's job to find a solution. Already in October 2019 I pointed out that we don't know how to cope with teams who press us high. Cooper has still not solved the problem.
 
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Borini

Key Player
We also continually put ourselves in trouble on goal kicks where instructions are short to the full back inside the area...3 forwards lurk and press we boot it upfield and lose the ball each time, or get in a mess trying to pass our way out of trouble with players who aren't the best at pass and MOVE...

They understand the concept , they pass but don't move... Routs turned a ball around the corner, he looked stupid as it went straight in to touch as Roberts was standing still Naughton would have kept moving and picked it up in his stride.
 

ivoralljack

Grizzled Veteran
Staff member
We also continually put ourselves in trouble on goal kicks where instructions are short to the full back inside the area...3 forwards lurk and press we boot it upfield and lose the ball each time, or get in a mess trying to pass our way out of trouble with players who aren't the best at pass and MOVE...

They understand the concept , they pass but don't move... Routs turned a ball around the corner, he looked stupid as it went straight in to touch as Roberts was standing still Naughton would have kept moving and picked it up in his stride.
In other words the players are not being coached in the basics of the game, which is all too clear when we watch them play. Thing is, if we can all see it, why can't anyone at the Liberty? Come to that, we should be able to expect the players themselves to have some sense of how to play the game. At times it honestly seems as though they haven't got a clue.
 

KVetch

Key Player
Being ahead is not a problem for the Swans. When we score first we win more often than not. So, we know how to defend the lead. But, when opposition score first, we are doomed. We can't break well organised defences, and we are vulnerable to counter-attacks.

@jackodiamonds said: "However the fact Swansea are able to get themselves in a winning position so often in the first place is still a positive."

Not so often, we have been more in a losing position this season. Exactly, 18 times in a losing position, and 15 times in a winning position. We have played six 0:0 draws.

Here I've made a chart with losing/winning positions and the final result. Only in the beginning of the season we managed to win a couple of games when we where behind.

View attachment 1344
Playing against Swans is relatively easy: press high, score first, defend, and counter-attack. This is structural, and it's the manager's job to find a solution. Already in October 2019 I pointed out that we don't know how to cope with teams who press us high. Cooper has still not solved the problem.
I was just about to look up that stat, how many times have we surrendered the first goal. It does seem to motivate us they start to play with more fire. I would have thought we went behind 25:8 matches. That's the way it's felt this season. It took managers about 6 games to figure out the press. Most teams that beat us are pressing hard.
 
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