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"Head coach Luke Williams was pleased by the physical conditioning his Swansea City side showed after a number of players got their first full 90 minutes of pre-season under their belts in the friendly against FC Köln.
The Swans suffered a 2-1 defeat at the Thermenstadion Bad Waltersdorf, pulling a goal back through Ben Cabango after Tim Lamperle had netted an early double for the German side.
But, whereas the opposition changed almost their entire team at the interval, the majority of the Swansea starting line-up played the whole game in sweltering conditions.
And Williams was happy with the tough workout against a side who had been plying their trade in the Bundesliga last term, and particularly how his players came through after some tough days of training in the Austrian heat.
“That’s what it is about. It was a tough game in tough conditions and we got what we needed from it and we are one step closer to being ready for the league,” he said.
“They are a top side with lots of quality, they changed their entire outfield at half-time which meant we were facing fresh players again, which was what we wanted.
“We got the really good test we wanted from it. It’s difficult to assess the quality of the performance because the players have accumulated a lot of work leading into the game, so it’s unfair to expect them to play at their absolute best.
“It’s about the attitude and the physical stuff we get out of it, I think some decision-making suffered because they are tired and we are dealing with the heat, but it’s about taking the maximum out of the game to be ready for the league.”
New signing Lawrence Vigouroux got his first outing in a Swansea shirt as he replaced Andy Fisher, with Williams confirming the keeper had suffered an injury.
“There was a problem for Andy, he picked up an injury, which means we needed Lawrence to go on,” added the Swans boss.
“He has already played a 90 in pre-season so he was ready for it, and he showed his bravery with the ball and made some good saves as well.
“He showed some of his qualities and it was good to get him out there.”
⚽️ KÖLN v SWANSEA CITY on 00:31 - Jul 25 by KeithHaynes
Well they were, he was looking like we want a Swans keeper to look 🤷🏻♂️
I'm with Keith on this, though I'm not a big Fisher fan. No chance with the first goal and can't be blamed for his decision to stand up near the six yard line for the one-on-one (sometimes it works). I did think in retrospect that there was a moment when the on-rushing striker wasn't fully in control, and dashing out and diving at the feet might have brought a better chance of a save.
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⚽️ KÖLN v SWANSEA CITY on 07:11 - Jul 25 with 1303 views
I think it's pretty clear that Vigouroux has been brought in to be number 1 and I'd be happy with Fisher on the bench, if required. No need to spend money we haven't got on another back-up keeper when we already have one who is more than good enough to play in the Carabao Cup, etc.
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⚽️ KÖLN v SWANSEA CITY on 07:25 - Jul 25 with 1279 views
⚽️ KÖLN v SWANSEA CITY on 07:11 - Jul 25 by Daggyjack
I think it's pretty clear that Vigouroux has been brought in to be number 1 and I'd be happy with Fisher on the bench, if required. No need to spend money we haven't got on another back-up keeper when we already have one who is more than good enough to play in the Carabao Cup, etc.
Do you think it's right to pay over £10K a week to a player to be continually on the bench, when we are now recruiting outfield players on half that.
EDIT Including Fishers replacement.
[Post edited 25 Jul 7:27]
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⚽️ KÖLN v SWANSEA CITY on 08:10 - Jul 25 with 1170 views
⚽️ KÖLN v SWANSEA CITY on 07:25 - Jul 25 by Whiterockin
Do you think it's right to pay over £10K a week to a player to be continually on the bench, when we are now recruiting outfield players on half that.
EDIT Including Fishers replacement.
[Post edited 25 Jul 7:27]
It is what it is, Fisher is our players the only way to offset his wages is to send him out on loan.
As for the goals conceded Fisher was not to blame, we tried playing out from the back for one and were caught out of shape for the other, runner coming from deep, if the full backs are out of position or up the pitch Key in the case of the goal then the other defenders and midfielders must react to nullify any threat, we didn't. Let's not excuse it because the season has not started yet, all the players in the defence and midfield were in place last year.The sooner we play midfielders and defenders in a formation where they can read the game and keep up with the opposition and not over commit the better.
Hopefully with Franco up to speed it might offer Williams better options, the return of Allen would help as well .
[Post edited 25 Jul 8:22]
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⚽️ KÖLN v SWANSEA CITY on 09:03 - Jul 25 with 1045 views
⚽️ KÖLN v SWANSEA CITY on 08:10 - Jul 25 by RichardO
It is what it is, Fisher is our players the only way to offset his wages is to send him out on loan.
As for the goals conceded Fisher was not to blame, we tried playing out from the back for one and were caught out of shape for the other, runner coming from deep, if the full backs are out of position or up the pitch Key in the case of the goal then the other defenders and midfielders must react to nullify any threat, we didn't. Let's not excuse it because the season has not started yet, all the players in the defence and midfield were in place last year.The sooner we play midfielders and defenders in a formation where they can read the game and keep up with the opposition and not over commit the better.
Hopefully with Franco up to speed it might offer Williams better options, the return of Allen would help as well .
[Post edited 25 Jul 8:22]
He wasn’t to blame but why the dramatic fall backwards after second goal.Like a young redwood tree getting lumbered Larry was different level
⚽️ KÖLN v SWANSEA CITY on 08:10 - Jul 25 by RichardO
It is what it is, Fisher is our players the only way to offset his wages is to send him out on loan.
As for the goals conceded Fisher was not to blame, we tried playing out from the back for one and were caught out of shape for the other, runner coming from deep, if the full backs are out of position or up the pitch Key in the case of the goal then the other defenders and midfielders must react to nullify any threat, we didn't. Let's not excuse it because the season has not started yet, all the players in the defence and midfield were in place last year.The sooner we play midfielders and defenders in a formation where they can read the game and keep up with the opposition and not over commit the better.
Hopefully with Franco up to speed it might offer Williams better options, the return of Allen would help as well .
[Post edited 25 Jul 8:22]
"It is what it is, Fisher is our players the only way to offset his wages is to send him out on loan."
Not necessarily, it depends how confident the club are with Nathan Broome, personally I have not seen him play to judge. Fisher is on half a million a year, we paid that for two FA cup appearances last season. We will be paying him £1M over the remainder of his contract, unless his bonuses include being in the match day squad and in that case he will get more. If Broome is good enough as back up and improving cut a deal with Fisher, pay half as severance and save half a million pounds. If Broome is not ready we are stuck with Fisher and he won't be going out on loan.
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⚽️ KÖLN v SWANSEA CITY on 09:36 - Jul 25 with 986 views
⚽️ KÖLN v SWANSEA CITY on 09:03 - Jul 25 by onehunglow
He wasn’t to blame but why the dramatic fall backwards after second goal.Like a young redwood tree getting lumbered Larry was different level
Agree he does look a better goalie, will wait to see how he gets on, hoping his services won't be called upon too often.
What worries me is the fact that once a team make a concerted effort to put pressure on us we cannot seem to cope, things need to change instead of same old, same old, starting off at a slow tempo, being unable to work out how to relieve that pressure thinking that going backwards all the time is the right thing to do, inviting pressure on, as for making the opposition work hard the ball isn't being moved quick enough, as for the long balls out wide, the wingers get isolated because the rest of the team is sitting deep, the interchange and movement in the middle of the park is imperative to support the forwards and defence but don't expect an individual midfielder to be able to go box to box continuously it has to be shared.
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⚽️ KÖLN v SWANSEA CITY on 09:44 - Jul 25 with 971 views
⚽️ KÖLN v SWANSEA CITY on 09:36 - Jul 25 by RichardO
Agree he does look a better goalie, will wait to see how he gets on, hoping his services won't be called upon too often.
What worries me is the fact that once a team make a concerted effort to put pressure on us we cannot seem to cope, things need to change instead of same old, same old, starting off at a slow tempo, being unable to work out how to relieve that pressure thinking that going backwards all the time is the right thing to do, inviting pressure on, as for making the opposition work hard the ball isn't being moved quick enough, as for the long balls out wide, the wingers get isolated because the rest of the team is sitting deep, the interchange and movement in the middle of the park is imperative to support the forwards and defence but don't expect an individual midfielder to be able to go box to box continuously it has to be shared.
Morning Rich I agree but trnotvto worry about things out of my control. What strikes me about Larry is that he gives the impression of be a commanding or essence ,so vital in a goalkeeper. That was his first game of note for us. I thought he looked very comfortable indeed. Fisher always looks the opposite ,to me anyway .
⚽️ KÖLN v SWANSEA CITY on 09:36 - Jul 25 by RichardO
Agree he does look a better goalie, will wait to see how he gets on, hoping his services won't be called upon too often.
What worries me is the fact that once a team make a concerted effort to put pressure on us we cannot seem to cope, things need to change instead of same old, same old, starting off at a slow tempo, being unable to work out how to relieve that pressure thinking that going backwards all the time is the right thing to do, inviting pressure on, as for making the opposition work hard the ball isn't being moved quick enough, as for the long balls out wide, the wingers get isolated because the rest of the team is sitting deep, the interchange and movement in the middle of the park is imperative to support the forwards and defence but don't expect an individual midfielder to be able to go box to box continuously it has to be shared.
Tend to agree Rich - my frustration so far in LW’s short tenure was perfectly illustrated in yesterday’s game in that we had circa 50% possession, 50% corners, 50% time in opposition half etc etc yet we had less than half as many attempts on goal (on & off target) so our goalkeeper is worked twice as hard which tends to lead to conceding goals unless our GK has a blinder.
That’s why for me a good finisher/striker plus goal scoring ‘10’ are key to the next 5 weeks (plus ideally another experienced CB).
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⚽️ KÖLN v SWANSEA CITY on 10:37 - Jul 25 with 830 views
⚽️ KÖLN v SWANSEA CITY on 10:31 - Jul 25 by Thornburyswan
Tend to agree Rich - my frustration so far in LW’s short tenure was perfectly illustrated in yesterday’s game in that we had circa 50% possession, 50% corners, 50% time in opposition half etc etc yet we had less than half as many attempts on goal (on & off target) so our goalkeeper is worked twice as hard which tends to lead to conceding goals unless our GK has a blinder.
That’s why for me a good finisher/striker plus goal scoring ‘10’ are key to the next 5 weeks (plus ideally another experienced CB).
100% agree with your last paragraph
You give it out, you take it back it`s all part of the game
⚽️ KÖLN v SWANSEA CITY on 10:31 - Jul 25 by Thornburyswan
Tend to agree Rich - my frustration so far in LW’s short tenure was perfectly illustrated in yesterday’s game in that we had circa 50% possession, 50% corners, 50% time in opposition half etc etc yet we had less than half as many attempts on goal (on & off target) so our goalkeeper is worked twice as hard which tends to lead to conceding goals unless our GK has a blinder.
That’s why for me a good finisher/striker plus goal scoring ‘10’ are key to the next 5 weeks (plus ideally another experienced CB).
A striker is a given but I agree that a no 10 is a must and has been for the last few years but seems to ignored or kidded that a certain player can do it.....Patino was the case last season. Eom seemed from the clips yesterday robust enough to give encouragement going into the season.
Still feel a left winger is also needed as much as a Striker and 10.
⚽️ KÖLN v SWANSEA CITY on 09:32 - Jul 25 by Whiterockin
"It is what it is, Fisher is our players the only way to offset his wages is to send him out on loan."
Not necessarily, it depends how confident the club are with Nathan Broome, personally I have not seen him play to judge. Fisher is on half a million a year, we paid that for two FA cup appearances last season. We will be paying him £1M over the remainder of his contract, unless his bonuses include being in the match day squad and in that case he will get more. If Broome is good enough as back up and improving cut a deal with Fisher, pay half as severance and save half a million pounds. If Broome is not ready we are stuck with Fisher and he won't be going out on loan.
Cannot see Fisher accepting an half a million pay cut unless he can find another club to take a chance on him.
Presume we won't see Fisher if he is injured and will see Broome in the Subs list for the game on Saturday unless it was only a minor injury
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⚽️ KÖLN v SWANSEA CITY on 12:12 - Jul 25 with 670 views
⚽️ KÖLN v SWANSEA CITY on 10:51 - Jul 25 by magicdaps10
A striker is a given but I agree that a no 10 is a must and has been for the last few years but seems to ignored or kidded that a certain player can do it.....Patino was the case last season. Eom seemed from the clips yesterday robust enough to give encouragement going into the season.
Still feel a left winger is also needed as much as a Striker and 10.
So will we be playing 4-4-2 or 4-3-3 happy with a variation of each, will both formations play with a number 10 role and who would that be and then who would you leave doing the ball winning in the midfielder. We have to have a viable striker up top but also a midfield who aren't cut through at will with a bit of pace and movement. Hopefully the new keeper will be a commanding and vocal presence in and around the box helping the defenders keep alert.