Harry Wilson has had a run of 3-4 ineffective performances, Matondo hasn't performed for Schalke yet and Woodburn isn't getting any football. Assuming that Bale plays through the middle and brooks on one wing, I would say it's a battle between wilson and james for the other wing at the moment.
Had a superb game v Norwich. Picked up a knock after 70', but soldiered on til the end. Has been looking better week on week. Would love him to get 90' v TnT
He's getting better with every match. He should definitely start against T & T, and if he goes well could be an asset off the bench against Slovakia. Needs to improve his decision making - but his end product is getting better for sure. It will be interesting to see how he fares against Man City - assuming he get's on the ball at all...
I've been a bit cautious about Dan James up to know - because apart from his blinding pace and dribbling ability, at the start of the season he showed a lot of naivety in his play - as you'd expect for a young pro making his first steps in the senior game. But seeing his performance against Man City he's now a credible option to start against Slovakia. His finishing is still poor - he has a habit of shooting too close to the goalie, and rarely shoots along the ground searching out the corner of the net - but his decision making is improving albeit still a bit hit and miss. However, the performance against Citeh puts his speed and interplay in a context that we haven't had previously against Championship sides, albeit good ones like Norwich and West Brom recently. James left Otamendi for dead on several occasions, and out-sprinted Walker as well. Apart from his role in Swansea's second goal, by injecting pace into the move and drawing the City defenders out of position, he could easily have had a penalty in the 65th minutes when Gundogan barged him in the box - again following a tremendous sprint into the box.
If we go with a 4-3-3 against Slovakia then Bale and Brooks are gimmes - but the other wide or central position is up for grabs. Roberts is a contender for sure - but he's doing well for Leeds as a number 10, and he's shown in the past that he's not ready to lead the line. Vokes may not be available, and if he is he won't be fully fit. So we may well need to go with a false 9. Bale is an obvious candidate - but perhaps he'd be more effective out wide? James has played with as a false 9 for Swansea at times - so he could be an option - alternating with Bale out wide and centrally.
There is basically one position up for grabs in a 4-3-3 (or a 4-2-3-1 for that matter): Wilson, Lawrence, Woodburn, Matondo and James are the candidates. We can dismiss Matondo and Woodburn because of their lack of game time at senior level this season. Lawrence is only just coming back from injury, so has to be a doubt. Wilson has strong credentials - but given that he's not going to be taking free-kicks ahead of Bale, then his case for a starting spot is considerably weakened. Which leaves James.
Another strong argument in favour of James is his defensive work. He has a fantastic work ethic in defence as well as attack. Against City he made a goal-preventing block in the 10th minute having sprinted back to the edge of this box to make the block. Apart from that he was willing to track back and do all the thankless blocking off of passing angles.
Let's see how James fares against T & T. If he goes well, he could be a strong contender to start against Slovakia.
Post by CrackityJones on Mar 18, 2019 13:46:42 GMT
Agree. I wouldn't have a problem with him starting alongside Bale and Brooks but he's more likely to come on for the last 20/30 mins against tired, aging legs.
Agree. I wouldn't have a problem with him starting alongside Bale and Brooks but he's more likely to come on for the last 20/30 mins against tired, aging legs.
Now there's a thought...
He excites me as much as any of the current crop of youngsters coming through and I include Brookes and Ampadu in that. Love the directness of his play. Its going to be very difficult for Swansea to keep hold of him this summer.
Agree. I wouldn't have a problem with him starting alongside Bale and Brooks but he's more likely to come on for the last 20/30 mins against tired, aging legs.
Now there's a thought...
He excites me as much as any of the current crop of youngsters coming through and I include Brookes and Ampadu in that. Love the directness of his play. Its going to be very difficult for Swansea to keep hold of him this summer.
Especially if he stars for Wales...
I could live with him leaving, as long as Swansea get a fair whack for him and at least some of the money is re-invested in improving the squad.
Post by allezlesrouges on Mar 28, 2019 14:24:38 GMT
I think outsiders may look at our current squad and not see too many players playing at the top level. But what's exciting to me is that I can easily see several of our squad making move to top level clubs this summer.
Wilson, James, Smith, C. Roberts, Ampadu and T. Roberts could all be playing Premier League (or equivalent) football as of next season. I don't think it's exaggerating to say that this is the healthiest position Welsh football has been in during my lifetime, and I'm honestly feeling quietly confident that we will top our qualifying group.