Bristol City v Swansea City

DID YOU
KNOW?
Leon Britton made 527 appearances for Swansea over
three spells (2002/03 loan, 2003-2010, 2011-2018).
Alongside former Swans teammates Alan Tate and Garry Monk,
Britton is one of a handful of players to have represented a club
in all four divisions of the English football pyramid.
IT’S NOT BEEN THE
START TO A NEW
SEASON MANAGER
RUSSELL MARTIN
WOULD HAVE HAD
IN MIND.
The new boss, having arrived from MK Dons
prior to the new campaign, suffered an opening
day loss to Blackburn Rovers and since then has
overseen one draw and one defeat at home.
There were better fortunes in Round One of the
Carabao Cup, as goals from Joel Latibeaudiere,
Ben Cabango and Joel Piroe secured a 3-0 win to
set up a Round Two fixture against Plymouth
Argyle.
It’s going to take time for the new
manager to bed in, alongside his staff
who also made the move from MK
Dons to South Wales. Former Bristol
City Under-23s Manager Luke Williams
was part of the team to follow Martin,
whose possession and passing style
were commended as a good fit for the
Swans.
Martin was appointed just six days before the
start of the new season following the departure
in July of Steve Cooper, who had led the Swans
to two successive top six finishes during his time
in charge.
He’ll need to dig out results if they are to
mount another play-off or promotion bid, and
go one step further following May’s Wembley
disappointment after the 2-0 defeat to Brentford.
As Martin looks to make his mark, he has three
former Robins players in his ranks. Jamie
Paterson and Liam Walsh signed for the club in
the summer, joining Korey Smith who made 40
appearances in his debut season for the Swans
after moving across the Severn in 2020.
It remains to be seen if midfielder
Walsh will return from injury
for Friday night’s encounter in
BS3, but Paterson has featured
in all three league games so
far which included a goal on his
debut.
A stalwart for City, Smith
remains a doubt for the
match at Ashton Gate
after suffering a calf
injury in the season
opener against
Blackburn Rovers.
3Robins return? Liam Walsh
is one of three ex-Cty stars in
the Swansea squad. Former
Robins Under-23 Manager
Luke Williams (inset) is also
part of the backroom team.
THE ROB NS Swansea City | 11