Our Squad for 2020-21

I found the thread that I started on Feb 10 titled ... "Just How Bad Is it" (Just How Bad Is It). Now we know for this past season, and I'm quaking with dread for the start of next season. At the time I wrote that piece the full scope and scale of Covid's impact was just coming onto the radar. Now we know there will be no bums in the seats when the season starts, the Club's only revenue will come from their share of the Sky contract (worth a crusty tea bag or two) and whatever the Club can squeeze out of us in term of virtual season tickets. Not only is our cupboard bare in terms of players but there are moths coming out of wallet. When I survey the scene: I can't help but expect L1 and L2 clubs to fold or go into some form of hibernation, but no football can be economically viable there. And, then I look at ourselves and I see a pauper dressed up in swanky clothes quickly on their way to becoming tattered. Promotion is a secondary dream to economic survival.

Here is what I posted back then the start the thread ..... as you can read .... it's DIRE. Regarding the players we sent out on loan ... I ended with "if they weren't considered good enough this season, why would they be any better for next". I stand by that statement and frankly we've been fucked at the drive through by our owners.

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A month ago or so, I posted (too "loudly" for some) not only about Andy Pandy's inept performance as a coach, but more importantly and critical to me, on the number of loan players, and that we were grooming the assets of other clubs at the expense of our own. It would be one thing if we had borrowed a bunch of world beaters, that had turned the Shit Streak around and were powering us up the table. But, unfortunately and obviously, world beaters at a U17 tournament (regardless of its prestige) does not translate into world beaters at the Championship level. And, these players are not head and shoulders above anything else we have/had on hand.

I have also commented that this past transfer window was a capitulation, tantamount to giving up on promotion. With the disclosure by our esteemed executive (An update from the chairman | Swansea ) that the club is truly skint and will be even more financially handcuffed in the season to come, it is understandable that the handcuffs are already on and we're doing the best we can. The current market value of the players on loan is around £11 million (Swansea City - Detailed squad 19/20)

Now that the January window has closed, we can take stock of where we are and how bare the cupboard is going to be on July 1. The following information is from the transfer market link above.

Current Squad --
I have added Cullen, Cabango, and Garrick not recognized as part of the squad by transfer market. Our basic squad is 20 players plus the three I have added. Red highlights are players on loan (30% of the current squad). Blue highlights are players with contracts terminating on June 30 (30% of the current squad). On June 30, 60% of our current squad disappear unless loans are extended or the players acquired or contracts extended for our current assets. Who wants to bet who will be sticking around to be coached by the hallowed Andy Pandy. I'm a little suspect of the contract expiration dates for our loan players -- I have not bothered to chase those down with their home club.




Next Season's Squad
Starting pre-season .... on July 1 .... drum roll please!!! The cupboard is BARE.

Instead of taking this season to develop our own assets, we've given valuable playing time to loaners from other clubs that will disappear like a fart in the wind at the final whistle of the season. And, we're skint, so I don't see us acquiring any player for a fee other than loan fees. If Ayew doesn't stay then Bidwell becomes our senior pro, followed by Fulton, Peterson and McKay.




When you've all finished puking on your boots, please let me know where we go from here .... other than L1.

We start the season with only 1 goal keeper with senior experience and a minimal amount at that. Rodon is our only "senior" center back. And the likes of McKay, Asoro, Peterson return from loan ... if they weren't considered good enough this season, why would they be any better for next.

Ayew has one more season left on his contract ... is this really true.

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The only consolation is that many other clubs in the Division are in an equally bad state and some are even worse off. I believe that Ayew does have one year left, which is why the club will probably flog him asap to get what they can by way of a fee and lose his £60k a week from the wage bill.

Mulder ( after proving he was useless in the 2nd leg ) has jumped ship back to herenveen in the Dutch league.

I'm not sure that Ayew at 30 is going to be wanted anywhere other than at another Championship club. I think he's ours, which is good on the field, tough on the wallet. If we continue our 3+2 system, then a partnership with Cullen is going to be crucial and with the right approach to service them could be highly productive. We're starting off with a decent midfield carryover. But we are woefully lacking in depth and experience.

Benda and Gould are our two keepers.

That’s a gloomy picture.
I’ve found one upside, but it too is gloomy, so I won’t mention it.


All right then.....

there probably won’t be a League 1 to be demoted to.

Exactly @Behindthegoal ... there shall be no pyramid. Professional football will be unsustainable below championship level. I am expecting one or two Championship clubs to fold and perhaps replaced by stronger “bigger” clubs from L1 ... Sunderland might be an example. There has to be a large enough fan base into which to sell virtual season tickets in sufficient volumes.

Soon there will be fans inside the stadiums in the UK. Here in Denmark we have had 10.000 per game this month. And guess what? No outbreaks. There where we have some outbreaks is a meat plant and cases imported from Sweden. Denmark has never closed its border to Sweden for Danes during this pandemic. Many young Danes have travelled and still travel to Sweden for partying in the Swedish night clubs. Our night clubs are still closed.

Eddie Howe is now available. He would be a good fit for us

Yankee_Jack said:

Eddie Howe is now available. He would be a good fit for us

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As far as the idiots in charge are concerned we have a brilliant manager who got us in to the play offs. Any other manager would have got us automatic promotion.
Next year we will be lucky to stay in the championship. He does not trust his squad members to do a job, that is why he is so slow to put a sub on. He also cannot change plan mid game due to his appalling lack of reading the opposition's game.When our midfield are dead on their feet he puts on an extra defender .

Borini said:

As far as the idiots in charge are concerned we have a brilliant manager who got us in to the play offs. Any other manager would have got us automatic promotion.
Next year we will be lucky to stay in the championship. He does not trust his squad members to do a job, that is why he is so slow to put a sub on. He also cannot change plan mid game due to his appalling lack of reading the opposition's game.When our midfield are dead on their feet he puts on an extra defender .

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When you think of the experienced applicants that applied for our managerial position that were brushed aside by Birch to give the position to a schoolboy coach, it just doesn't make sense.

Wba want Benda, they say he could go all the way. I have said for Two years he is our best keeper, now we probably will never see him in our first team.

Maybe we should put a clause in our player sales, saying any player bids to include the manager as well.
It would be pretty fool proof. Either no one would buy our players , or we'd have a new manager.

I was surprised how poor Mulder was when he replaced the injured Woodman recently. The last time he had a good run in the team I thought he was really good, dominant in the air, and a solid shot stopper, but this time he seemed frozen on his line and hesitant. Why has he changed, is it lack of game time or poor coaching. Benda must surely be better after his stint on loan at Swindon.

lliwt yr lavac said:

I was surprised how poor Mulder was when he replaced the injured Woodman recently. The last time he had a good run in the team I thought he was really good, dominant in the air, and a solid shot stopper, but this time he seemed frozen on his line and hesitant. Why has he changed, is it lack of game time or poor coaching. Benda must surely be better after his stint on loan at Swindon.

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There's nothing like game time. For me, he was an improvement over Woody in many areas. Was he as good as De Vries, No? But, I think Mulder and Nordfeldt were net-net better keepers than Woody.

Borini said:

Wba want Benda, they say he could go all the way. I have said for Two years he is our best keeper, now we probably will never see him in our first team.

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Read again today that WBA are interested in Benda saying he has great potential.

Let's compare .... Gallagher v Celina. In the final month of the season, once Andy Pandy had stumbled into 3+2 with a #10 behind Ayew and Brewster, what was it that had Gallagher ahead of Celina: coaches pet, Celina lazy in practice, what.

We've all seen Celina do some excellent plays and score goals although sporadically of late ... and frankly Gallagher was not exactly making plays at the same level of Celinas and was dogging it late in games.

If we continue with the same 3+2 setup into next season - is Celina the player for that role. I am presuming that it will be Cullen and Ayew up top.

Routledge has signed a new 1 year contract, his experience and influence on the youngsters cannot be underestimated.

In fairness to Routs, his technical brilliance scored two goals against Reading that kept the season going forward. His first goal was a peach. But I don't know why a simple header should count as technical brilliance ... but in the world of the blind a one eyed man is king.

I wonder how many more headed goals WR15 has scored?
I bet he doesn’t stay behind after training for extra heading practice.

A video just released featuring Routs. Some great goals. But a sad video, as it frames just how good we were and how much the Monk Move led to our demise.