Real Football Man All of the Football, All of the time
The second of the two Premier League matches this afternoon takes us to the Liberty Stadium when 14th place Swansea play host to Newcastle who currently lie in 16th. A win for either club would be much welcomed and surge them into the top half of the table.
Swansea have arguably had the better transfer window especially late on, they may have lost Gylfi Sigurdsson and Fernando Llorente but they have managed to find replacements in the form of Wilfried Bony and also the loan signing of Renato Sanches.
Paul Clement has used his connections to pull off something of a masterstroke in the capture of the young Portuguese international. After Sanches moved to Bayern Munich last season it is fair to say his progress has stalled slightly at the Allianz Arena.
So a move on loan could very well be a win win. As Swansea pick up a real piece of quality in terms of personnel and Bayern Munich will then get a player who has seen his career revived and they should then go on to reap the benefits for years to come.
It is fair to say those two signings could make or break Swansea as failure to replace their two former star players could have been a major cause for concern but the signing of Sanches and the return of Bony to the club will give fans cause for optimism.
The same can perhaps not be said for Newcastle as they were largely frustrated in the transfer window and that frustration can be felt by Rafa Benitez the most. Rumours are abound that the former Liverpool and Real Madrid manager could walk due to not being backed financially over the summer.
Whether or not that does come to fruition remains to be seen but this is a squad that is perhaps lacking in quality in all departments of the pitch. It’s a solid if not spectacular squad between now and January and it looks like work rate is going to have to make up for the perceived shortfall of talent if they are not to struggle in the first half of the season.
Before the international break they did however pick up their first win of the season as they made light work of a halpess West Ham side. The Magpies ran out 3-0 winners at St James Park with Joselu opening his account for the club after a £5m move from Stoke.
After the victory you could say that the international break has come at the wrong time as they would have looked to continue that momentum with a game straight away. So it will be interesting to see just as to what affect the hiatus will have had.
For Swansea, Renato Sanches is in line for his debut today. Whether or not he will be thrown straight into proceedings remains to be seen, he may need to adjust to the cut and thrust of the Premier League but there is no doubting the talents this young man possesses and could start from the off.
Newcastle are without Alexsandar Mitrovic after he starts a three game suspension. He was not sent off against West Ham but was later punished for an off the ball encounter. The Serbian was adjudged to have used an elbow and was subsquently handed a ban.
As for what the outcome will be today, I think Swansea’s new signings will just give them the edge as Newcastle will look to try and get something on the road. Unfortunately I don’t think that will be the case as I reckon it will be a home win.
Here is what social media thinks will happen – you can still vote
And who will be smiling between #Swansea and #Newcastle
— Dan Tracey (@dantracey1983) September 10, 2017
