Swansea’s recent rise and successful retaining of their Premier League status has been outstanding but with the club seemingly going from strength to strength they now have the chance to really stamp themselves as a top 10 team. This would be huge for a club that was only promoted to the Premiership in 2011 and now are one of the most exciting and dangerous teams outside the European places. So what has given Swansea such an epic rise from underachieving football league team to Premier League starlets?
First of all is the man who has over seen this rise since taking over ten years ago, Swansea Chairman Huw Jenkins. His plan for Swansea has worked excellently, starting with building a stadium and building the club and allowing the team to move smoothly up the ranks whilst bring stability to the club. The method of Swansea’s rise has been sensible and Jenkins has recently called himself “dull” enough to take over the Swansea reigns. I’d call it rational Huw.
A large part of the success at the Liberty Stadium has been down to the fantastic succession of managers that have graced Swansea. Firstly it was Roberto Martinez who pulled Swansea into the Championship, before Brendan Rodgers again got them promoted. After an impressive debut season, his departure left a worry the Swans would struggle. Again, though, they bought in a manager who would continue to improve the team: Michael Laudrup. One the main strong points of the small succession of managers is that they have been prepared to continue from where the last left off rather than to change the style of the team. There have been very little periods of adjusting, with Swansea continuing under new ideas rather than faltering as new initiatives are established and tried. The team has stayed quite similar in itself as well, with some players staying with The Swans through the leagues. This has been important for the Welsh club as it means that players blend in easier when they are bought and new managers know precisely what to expect in training.
One of the most important attributors to Swansea’s accomplishments is their playing style. Their sharp passing and possession tactic has worked wonders allowing them to overcome many of the major teams in the league. Their ability to keep the ball and make more triangles than Dairylea has made them a feared team in the English top flight. This tactic has been carried on through Rodgers and Laudrup, both seemingly happy to keep the general style with their own managerial tweaks. The ethos of Swansea in recent years is of evolution and not revolution, a commendable philosophy for a football club.
On the other hand, a club seemingly fighting above their weight division could easily evolve into a selling club. Joe Allen, Scott Sinclair and Danny Graham have all left the club for substantial fees in 2012 and 2013, though the latter was because of missing out of the starting XI. Even so, with reported interest for star man Michu and Vice-captain Ashley Williams, only the ambition and depth of Swansea’s pockets will seal the futures of the clubs finest players. With the first piece of silverware in their history and a European spot for next season, you would hope Swansea’s expectation of success is surely met.
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