Swansea City side reveal a shocking fact that may upset Notts County: updated
Swansea City side reveal a shocking fact that may upset Notts County: updated
Swansea City is currently in the top half of the division despite their struggles with goal scoring. They have had a respectable start to the 2024–25 Championship season.
Luke Williams’ team still has a positive goal difference despite Swansea’s eight league goals in 10 games, which is tied for the second-lowest amount in the league. Their lack of offensive punch is the only thing preventing them from making a meaningful play-off push.
To be fair, Williams has had plenty of opportunities in home games against teams like Bristol City, Stoke City, and Cardiff City. In fact, in their most recent 0-0 draw with the Potters, they had 19 shots, thus the Swansea manager
To be sure, Swansea’s defense has been impressive this season, and after ten games, they rank among the best in the league, which may surprise some people, especially Notts County supporters.
The defensive track record of Swansea City may surprise Notts County.
Swansea has only given up six goals in ten Championship games, and they haven’t given up more than one goal in any one of those games yet.
Though it’s improbable that they’ll be able to play the entire season without giving up more than one goal in a match, it does demonstrate how diligently Swansea has strengthened their defense this summer, making them far more difficult to play against than they were under Williams’ leadership.
With three fewer goals conceded than Sheffield United (3) and Burnley (4), Swansea has the third-best goal-concealed record in the division. Given that both of these teams were recently demoted from the Premier League, Williams should be commended much for including his squad amongst such groups.
In sharp contrast to his Notts County team from the previous season, the Magpies actually had one of the worst defensive records in League Two from the first day of play until his departure for Swansea at the beginning of January 2024.
Williams left a Notts County team that was in the running for promotion, but after 26 games, they had given up 28 goals, a record only surpassed by Sutton United (34) and Swindon Town (33).
They could give up a lot of goals in a game, as evidenced by their 4-3 victory over Forest Green Rovers, 5-4 loss to Colchester United, 5-1 loss to Sutton United, and 4-2 loss to AFC Wimbledon. Some Magpies fans might be surprised to see Williams in charge of a Swansea team with such strong defensive play.
A few weeks into his tenure, Swansea fans expressed concerns about Williams’ possible defensive shortcomings, and those worries appeared well-founded when they lost 5-0 to Bournemouth before halftime.
The Swansea team that gave up three goals to Southampton, four to Leeds, and five to Bournemouth early in Williams’ tenure has gradually improved and is currently among the league’s strongest defensive teams—a statistic that few would have predicted.
Swansea City has the necessary infrastructure in place to contend for the playoffs.
Swansea is perhaps the total antithesis of Williams’ Notts County team; although the Magpies scored and conceded a lot, Swansea neither scores nor concedes a lot.
Williams needs to strike a balance because, although having a strong defense is crucial, he also needs to be a threat moving forward.
To be fair, this doesn’t seem to be the case. On a different day, Swansea could have led Stoke by at least two goals at the break, and you get the impression that if they can score more frequently, their solid defense will allow them to contend for the play-offs.
Although Williams is aware that his team has to score more goals, he will likely be content with how his defense is holding up. It seems that having a strong defense is the first step toward success, with the rest following.
Jisung Eom, Ronald, and Zan Vipotnik are three forwards that Swansea have brought into the Championship; it is believed that as they get more comfortable, they will be able to contribute more goals and assists.
Williams should be commended for fixing his prior defensive shortcomings, as it has provided his team with a strong foundation from which to grow.
