FM14: Swansea City - We're Swansea City, We'll always be white!

10 reasons why should you play as Swansea!

1. A solid squad which is easily good enough to compete in the top half of the Premier League.

2. A few real star players like Michu, Bony, and Williams who could generate major funds if big clubs come in.

3. A few very good young prospects who are already good enough for first team football like Davies, Amat, Shelvey and Vasquez.

4. Only one philosophy to be judged on, 'play possession football'.

5. The chance to retain our first major trophy, The Capitol One Cup.

6. European football, with the Swans qualifying for the Europa League through winning the cup.

7. The derby is back! Cardiff have been promoted to the promise land, so two games of pure hatred before they hopefully get relegated!

8. Very little debt (15m).

9. The enhanced reputation from being in european competition means it will be easier than ever to sign good players for the swans.

10. In my opinion, they're the best club in the world!

A little bit of history..(don't worry, I'll try not to bore)

In the beginning - Long before Swansea Town came into being, children had played football on a piece of waste ground on which vetch - a cabbage-like plant used for cow feed - grew wild. Vetch Field, as it became known, was leased by the Swansea Gas Light Company to the Swansea League who laid out clinker pitches. In 1912, Swansea Town were formed as a professional club and took up residence. This was an ambitious venture given the dominance of rugby union in the area. The new football club adopted the same all white strip as Swansea RFU and apart from a few seasons when black shorts were introduced, they have worn all-white for most of their career. The club was known as Swansea Town but they changed their name when Swansea was granted City status in 1969.

More recent history - There's one game in the history of the club that is easily the most important in it's history. On May 3rd 2003, Swansea beat Hull City to avoid relegation on the last day of the season at the expense of Exeter. Many believe that this game sparked a massive rise in fortunes for the Swans. Swansea crowned their last season at The Vetch with a last game of the season promotion in 2005 from League 2 to League 1.

The move to the Liberty Stadium was followed by the arrival of former player Roberto Martinez as manager. Many believe that it was his work on the training ground that sparked the attractive style of football Swansea City play today. Martinez got the Swans promoted to the Championship in 2008 by winning the League one title. He also gained a respectable 8th position in the return to English footballs second tier, missing out on playoffs by 1 point. Martinez left Swansea for Wigan in June of 2009, and was replaced by Portugal's Paulo Sousa. Swansea once again missed out on the playoffs by a point, before Sousa left for Leicester. Swansea took what many thought was a gamble on appointing Brendan Rogers but he took Swansea to 3rd in the league in his first season and won the play offs in a thrilling final at wembley, beating Reading 4-2.

Kicking off the 2011–12 in the Premier League made Swansea the first Welsh team to play in the division since its formation in 1992. The Swans defeated Arsenal, Liverpool, and Manchester City, the eventual champions, at home during the season. The Swans finished their debut Premier League season in 11th, but at the end of the season Brendan Rodgers left to manage Liverpool. He was replaced by Michael Laudrup for the 2012–13 Premier League season. His first league game ended in a 5–0 victory over Queens Park Rangers away at Loftus Road. This saw Swansea joint top of the Premiership, making it the first time since October 1981 the team have been at the summit of the top tier, when they beat Stoke City 2–1 away and led during the 10th round of matches. On 1 December, Swansea picked up a big 0–2 away win against Arsenal, with Michu scoring twice during the last minutes of the game. This marks Swansea's first win at Arsenal in three decades. On 24 February 2013, Swansea beat Bradford City 5–0 in the League Cup final. This triumph, in a record victory, was Swansea's first major piece of silverware. Swansea City finished the season in 9th place in the Premier League, improving upon the league standing achieved in the previous season. So now it's your time. What history can you make?

Swansea In Football Manager

I imagine the debt will be easily managable. As you can see there are no club legends yet. Could you be the first?

Facilities are one of the things I will constantly be pestering the board to upgrade until we have the best. Will also be doing the same for the youth.

Here are the budgets. Not a massive amount of money to spend but it's enough to buy the couple of players needed. I selected the 'top half' expectation and adjusted my budget to 7.5million.

The First Team Squad

Goalkeepers

Michel Vorm - Your undisputed number one. A bit underrated in my opinion but still a very solid keeper. Few years left in him yet.

Gerhard Tremmel - A good back up on cheap wages, but you may want to consider a younger prospect.

Gregor Zabret - A decent young prospect but probably never going to make it to your number one spot. Could be used as back up if you sell Tremmel though.

Right Back

Angel Rangel - Your strongest player in this position. A bit of a cult hero at Swansea after driving around the city giving sandwiches to the homeless on a cold night one January. At the age of 30 you should get a couple of years out of him. Equally adept in both halves of the pitch.

Dwight Tiendalli - Decent enough cover for Rangel, but will never set the world alight. May be one to get rid of if you can find a good prospect.

Left Back

Ben Davies - One of the brightest young talents in the premier league. A swansea fan all his life, Ben is already a very solid left back but has room for improvement. Should probably be rotated with Neil Taylor.

Neil Taylor - Another good left back who will give good competition for Ben Davies. I will personally be retraining him to play right back too so I can eventually play him and Davies in the same team.

Centre Back

Ashley Williams - Team captain and the rock in your defence. At the peak of his powers and probably one of the best central defenders in the league.

Chico - A fan favourite, Chico should partner Williams at the heart of your defence. A solid option with his best years ahead of him.

Jordi Amat - A summer signing from Espanyol. Good cover option with the potential to be an excellent premiership defender.

Garry Monk - Your club captain. A bit out of his depth in this division due to lack of pace. Been with the club since 2004, so up to you whether you keep him around for sentiment.

Central Midfield

Leon Britton - This little metronome is excellent at winning the ball and keeping the team ticking over. Should be a key figure in your team for your first season. Also a great tutor.

Jose Canas - A free transfer this summer from Real Betis, this tough-tackling midfielder will be a good rotation option.

Jonathan de Guzman - On loan from Villareal for a second season, Jonathan is a superb ball player with a good all round skill set. His loan also has an option to buy for 5million. Personally, it will be the first signing I make because his value will soar. Key player.

Jonjo Shelvey - Already great with potential to be excellent. The new 5million signing from Liverpool will run all day and will provide great competition in midfield.

Right Wing

Pablo Hernandez - Probably the most technically gifted of your wingers. Pablo is in his prime and should probably be in your starting 11.

Nathan Dyer - A fan favourite. Hardworking and has pace to burn. Nathan isn't the most technically gifted player in the squad but can cause defenders problems with his direct style. Massively underrated in my opinion. Also an option on the left.

Wayne Routledge - A natural on the right but probably more likely to be played on the left. Wayne has enough quality to do a decent job in the premiership, but probably won't set the world alight.

Left Wing

Roland Lamah - The only natural left winger in your squad, Roland is on loan from Osasuna. There is an option to buy for 2.2m, which he is already worth more than. His contract with Osasuna runs out at the end of the season so can be signed for free(providing someone else doesn't pinch him away from you). Good rotation option.

Central Attacking Midfielder

Michu - The jewel in your crown. Michu is the big name in your team. A potential goal scoring machine from the AMC position, use him wisely.

Alejandro Pozuelo - A new signing from Real Betis, Pozuelo can offer you good cover for Michu. Room for improvement, but not too highly rated.

Striker

Wilfried Bony - The new record signing from Vitesse. Bought to take goal scoring pressure off Michu, Wilf should be the focal point of your attack. Strong, fairly quick and a deadly finisher - he should provide your team with a constant threat upfront.

Alvaro Vazquez - On loan from Getafe, the young Spanish striker will be good cover for Bony upfront. Will chip in with goals off the bench. Another player who is worth buying for his agreed price of 2.5million. Clearly worth more than that. Potential to be a good striker.

Leroy Lita - The ex-middlesbrough man has probably out-stayed his welcome at the liberty. Not good enough and should probably be listed straight away.

Under 21 Squad players with potential

Darnel Situ - A decent young centre back, just needs to work on his tackling and pace. Good enough for back up at premiership level.

Ashley(Jazz) Richards - Again, decent enough for cover at right back. Swansea born and bread so can fill the homegrown quota in the Europa League.

Kenji Gorre - Potential to be a decent right winger. Needs a good tutor.

Rory Donnelly - Another back up option for Strikers. Very good mentally, just needs to improve a little more to be able to impose himself on the squad.

My Squad Analysis

In my opinion, the squad is easily good enough to get a top 10 finish. There is depth throughout, but I will personally be looking to sign another centre back as I always like to have 4 solid players in that position and Monk doesn't cut it. I will probably also offload Tremmel and try to sign a young goalkeeper to nurture into Vorms eventual replacement. I will also look to offload Leroy Lita.

Based on the 4-2-3-1 formation Swansea play in real life, I would say your strongest 11 is probably...

Potential Signings

Goalkeeper

Jack Butland - Good young english keeper

Jeronimo Rulli - Argentinian youngster with potential, possible work permit problems

Itumeleng Khune - Cheap and great back up. Possibly even competition for Vorm? Good tutor.

Right Back

Sebastian Corchia - An excellent prospect. Long term replacement for Rangel.

Nathanial Clyne - An english alternative to Corchia. Probably more expensive though.

Centre back

Eder Alvarez Balanta - Everyone on the forum knows about this guy, massive potential.

Doria - Same as above

Ezequiel Munoz - A solid defender who can be bought relatively cheap.

Giuseppe Bellusci - Another great defender who's not too expensive.

Lorik Cana - Cheap and a great tutor for someone like Amat.

Ryan Shawcross - The english option.

Left wing

Nicolas Gaitan - Usually starts on the transfer list and available for around 7million.

Vitinho - Can be picked up at the end of the season for free, excellent young prospect.

Other players to consider

Keisuke Honda - Available for free in January. You'll have to fight for him but would be an asset to your midfield.

Joe Allen - Worth keeping an eye out on how much he's playing because he's a homegrown player.

Franco Zucculini - A freebie available straight away. Potentially a longterm replacement for Britton.

Mohamed Diame - A midfield powerhouse who can be bought for his 3.5million release clause. Major profit to be made.

Carlos Fierro - Young and talented. One for the future.

Gabriel Barbosa - Also young talented and one for the future.

Staff

In my honest opinion, only Alan Curtis(Coach), Adrian Tucker(GK Coach) and Erik Larsen(Scout) are of decent quality. I will personally be looking to bring in a lot of staff, so keep an eye out here for recommendations.

Tactics

As I have said in a previous post, I think the Swansea squad is most suited to a 4-2-3-1(wide) formation. This tend to be the formation they use in real life, with the focus being on 'possession with penetration'. The team likes to keep the ball, moving the ball around the pitch, drawing out defenders and then changing the pace of the attack when the opponent has left gaps to exploit. The defenders will always try to play their way out of defence(sometimes foolishly) rather than clear their lines. The goalkeeper also distributes the ball to his defenders whenever possible, and often receives the ball from his defenders to help keep possession. The central midfielders do not roam too far from their positions and one of them always sits if the other pushes on to join an attack. The fullbacks will always look to help out their wingers in attack, and the wingers always track in to help their fullbacks defend. The attacking midfielder(usually Michu) will look to get on the ball as much as possible, organising the attack before eventually arriving late in the box to get on the end of chances. Finally, the lone striker will look to hold up the ball, bring others into play and look to get on the end of any opportunity to score in the box.

Here are the three formations I will be using for Swansea.

All three tactics will still be based around keeping the ball to comply with the club philosophy, with slight variations on how direct the team is.

Obviously, there are other tactical options. If you think you'r approach has brought you good results and you want it added to the tactics section of the opening post then let me know.

The Derby

I wanted to have a section on this thread that is solely dedicated to screenshots of people giving Cardiff a battering. Got a game you want to show off? Post it in the thread and I'll link it on here. To any Cardiff fans looking at these screenshots...

My first derby on FM14

Swansea Manager Records

Beaten one of these records? Post proof in the thread and I'll update it.

Premier League points in one season:

Win streak:

Unbeaten streak:

Biggest competitive win:

Most goals in one league season(team, not including cups):

Most goals in one league season(player, not including cups):

Most goal in one season(player, including cups):

Least goals conceded in a league season:

Biggest transfer fee paid:

Biggest transfer fee recieved:

Highest average rating over a season(atleast 30 games played):

Biggest win against Cardiff:

Most league titles won:

Most cup competitions won:

Earliest club legend:

Think of anymore records to be kept? Post in the thread and they'll be added.

That last one hurt me a bit.

Good start to the thread

That last one hurt me a bit.

Good start to the thread

Thanks. I'm on a nightshift tonight with nothing to do, so aiming to have this pretty much done by the morning!

Good thread chap! Nice layout and good to see different features from the norm....like your section for the local derby! good idea!

As a Norwich City home & away season ticket holder I've got nothing but good things to say about Swansea (where as I cant say the same about Cardiff). Me & the lads usually go in the away pub in Norwich after games which is a big no no but we know the bouncer on the door and usually lets us in.(unless its a certain team -Ipswich, Cardiff, etc...)

Usually a wierd experience as were the only NCFC fans in there but we always enjoy the banter an a good chat with fans with different views other than our own if you get me. Swansea fans were utterly top draw last season & considering the distance travelled they were in fine voice and full of good humoured banter. (rare these days!)

Swansea (as your made clear with your thread) are a superb team to control on FM14 should an outsider from the swansea fan base want a team to play with. Great foundations and heading in the right direction (something I wish I could say about my own team). Look forward to checking back in and seeing the derby banter!

Thanks a lot Mattias, it's nice to get positive feedback, especially when you spend hours writing these things. Glad you liked the derby screenshots idea too. Just need some people to get playing as the Swans now!

The idea of going into the away team pub appeals to me massively. I love having banter with the away fans and Swansea fans in general like nothing more than to have a laugh with the opposition fans. You'll tend to find most away fans who come to the liberty and sing songs and have banter will get applause at the end of the game from the swansea faithful. Good to hear that we're setting the right example!

Day one in management of the Swans... Everything I did before clicking continue!

Step one - I read the standard starting messages and attending the meetings. I asked to have a message sent regarding budgets so I could decide for myself. I set up the press conference, regular staff meetings, told my assistant what I needed help with etc.

Step two - I set up the tactics in the opening post, so it gives my team as much time as possible to get used to the tactics before competitive games start.

Step three - I placed all unwanted players on the transfer list(Leroy Lita, Curtis Obeng, Daniel Alfei etc), set their squad status to not needed and made them unavailable for loan so that I only get transfer offers.

Step four - I mutually terminated all unwanted staff. This was quite a lot of staff, but I felt it needed a complete overhaul as most of them were simply not good enough. I then scoured the staff search for better staff and offered out contracts. I will eventually post a picture of my staff for season one in the opening post under the staff section.

Step five - I made my player shortlist. This naturally takes a long time but I like to have a clear idea of who all my tranfer targets are for the present and future. Obviosuly people will be added and removed from the list as time goes on, but it's nice to have somewhere to start.

Then once I've clicked continue... - I spoke to the board. I asked them to......

- Increased percentage of transfer revenue

- Find a feeder club to increase our profile in other countries(merchandising)

- Improve youth facilities

- Increase youth level

- Improve training facilities

All of these requests were granted, I tried a few others but to no avail.

Will do a proper update soon enough, but quick tip for anyone starting and wanting to boost the transfer funds. Ki Sung-Yeung, who is on loan at Sunderland, can be offered out to boost cash. I have checked, and the most Sunderland are willing to pay is £3.5 million(his value) but if he's unlikely to feature in your plans when he returns then you may want to take the cash for him now. I will be!

July/August

So plenty of wheeling and dealing in the transfer market has meant I've bought the following:

- Eder Alvarez Balanta for £10.5 million(3m upfront, 7.5m over 48 months)

- Giuseppe Bellusci for £1.4 million

- Franco Zuculini for free

- Keisuke Honda for free(arrives on 1st January)

..and the players who have left the club are:

- Leroy Lita for 250k to Sheffield Wednesday

- Ki Sung-Yeung for 3.5m to Sunderland

My thinking was that Zuculini can replace Britton long-term due to their similar stats. Bellusci can cover both CB and RB positions and will eventually probably be sold for a tidy profit. Balanta speaks for himself really, but long-term partner for Amat.

Results

Euro Cup - Hibernian 0-1 Swansea (Michu) - Steady little win, didn't expect too much too early from the tactic but seemed to dominate the game.

Euro Cup - Swansea 0-0 Hibernian - Dominated the game but couldn't score. Not ideal but progression was the aim. Played a lot of back up players.

League - Swansea 2-3 Fulham (Hernandez, Bony) - Frustrating game. 2-0 down after 23 minutes. Dominated the game (23 shots to 4). Annoying, but stats don't win games.

Euro Cup - Esbjerg fB 1-1 Swansea (Lamah) - Quite an even game apart from possession, which we dominated. Disappointing. Another game for back up players.

League - Aston Villa 1-2 Swansea (Bony 2) - Well deserved win, they scored late on when I tried to see the game out. Dominated the first 70 minutes.

Euro Cup - Swansea 2-0 Esbjerg fB (Amat, Lamah) - Easy victory. Back up players did me proud this time. That's us in the group stages.

League - Swansea 2-1 Man City (Michu 2) - GET IN THERE! I was quite ballsy with my tactics and attacked the game. They slightly had the better of us but we took out chances.

So a decent enough start. Wilfried Bony got player of the month for August! Euro cup draw put me in a group with Sevilla, Frankfurt and Red Star. Tough!

September

Managed to convince the board to up my staff limit this month so brought in two more coaches. This month hasn't gone too well though, Vorm has been injured for all of it, and Pozuelo has broken his leg and is out for 6 months.

Results

League - Southampton 3-0 Swansea - Thoroughly outclassed. Couldn't trouble their defence, they troubled mine too often. No complaints.

Euro Cup - Sevilla 3-2 Swansea (Shelvey, Vazquez) - Played the back up players as I wasn't expecting to get much. Went 2-0 up and threw it away.

League Cup - Swansea 0-0 Norwich (8-7 on pens) - Dominated the game but again couldn't score. Glad to be through.

League - Stoke 2-1 Swansea (De Guzman) - Very Frustrating. 1-0 up with 10 minutes to go, their rightback hits one from 40 yards. Fuming. 2 minutes later, Jordi Amat heads back to Tremmel, who moves out of the way so the ball goes in. Football manager 2014 hates me. White knuckled!

So yeah, not a good month. 6 points from 5 games in the league and sitting in 15th. Things need to improve.

October

After a rough September, we really needed to get our season on up and running or we could be playing for nothing by January. I held a squad meeting in an attempt to boost morale and got down to work.

Results

Euro Cup - Swansea 1-2 Red Star (Vazquez) - A very, very frustrating game. Dominated from start to finish. They scored a 94th minute winner on the break, I'd been pushing for a goal since the 60th. Can't buy goals for love nor money at the moment.

League - Swansea 1-1 Arsenal (Vermaelen o.g.) - Another game we should have won. Seem to be saying this a lot so far!

League - Swansea 3-2 Sunderland (Michu, Lamah, Bony) - In control and never really looked like losing. Conceded late on. Better, but still not great.

Euro Cup - Swansea 0-0 Frankfurt - Shots 22-1, On target 9-0, Clear cut 2-0, Half chances 5-0, Posession 63-37. What more do we have to do? Annoying!

League - Everton 1-1 Swansea (Jagielka o.g.) - Got a point out of a game we deserved nothing from. Cheers Phil, feeling sorry for me?

League - Swansea 0-1 West Ham - They were clinical, we weren't yet again. Might be time to rethink the tactics.

So after picking up a single point from the first three group games, we will now have to win our last 3 to be in with a chance of making the knockout rounds. The league form has picked up slightly but still not good enough. Might adopt my tactic to play players in their prefered roles, see if it makes a difference.

In other news, I asked the board for extra transfer cash and wages, they gave me £8.5 million and upped my wage budget. I used this to buy Lamah, Vazquez and De Guzman permanently.

November

So november was going to be a make or break month, so early in the save. Needed to secure some big results if I wanted to stay in the job after a poor start to my career.

Results

League - Chelsea 3-1 Swansea (Lamah) - Deserved to lose, their counter attacking was murdering my defence.

League Cup - Swansea 3-2 Leicester (Shelvey, Lamah, Michu) - Thought it'd be an easy game and played some back up players. Had to bring on Michu to win it at the death.

Euro Cup - Frankfurt 1-2 Swansea (Hernandez, Michu) - A good performance away from home to keep the dream alive.

League - Swansea 1-2 West Brom (Michu) - Another really, really annoying game. 2-0 down and having to chase the game with 28 minutes gone. Should have won.

League - Man United 2-1 Swansea (Lamah) - Deserved to lose but gave a good account of ourselves for once.

Euro Cup - Swansea 0-1 Sevilla - Attacked the whole game and caught on the break once. European dream over. Noticing a recurring theme in games now. Fed up!

League - Norwich 0-2 Swansea (Dyer, Bony) - Good performance, and Bony breaking his drought. Williams sent off with half hour to go too!

So things are still looking drab. So disappointing to have gone out of Europe already. League form is awful too. The press were talking about me getting sacked before the Norwich game and with Cardiff at home next, it's probably a must win! Currently sitting an awful 17th position in the league. Time to pull our fingers out!

One positive though, Roland Lamah is really starting to chip in with goals. Impressed.

Derby Day!

The build up

Cardiff's start to the season had been much better than ours. They were somehow sat in 8th position(unrealistic) and we were in 17th. A win was a must. Malky decided to try play mind games with me, but it didn't work. I just mugged him off and told him we would win.

The line-ups

With Williams banned, I went for a Bellusci and Balanta combo at the back. Leon lost out to Zuculini and Dyer to the inform Roland Lamah. I was confident we'd have enough!

So I gave the boys a typical passionate teamtalk and sent them out!

The game

We kick off and immediately drive into the heart of the Cardiff defence, forcing an early corner. A good start. The game moves on and we're starting to stamp our authority on the game. On the 12th minute we get another corner. De Guzman whips in a ball to the edge of the 6-yard box, where Wilfried Bony rises to beast in a header. GOAL, Swansea 1-0 Cardiff (Bony) .

5 minutes later and a speculative Peter Whittingham drive from 30 yards crashes against the bar. Kris Commons reacts quickest in the box to tap in the rebound. WAIT.. Oh it's been disallowed! Replays show Commons to be offisde by a country mile!

27 minutes in and Angel Rangel twists his knee and has to come off. I decided to move Bellusci to rightback and bring on Chico Flores to sit at CB. Little did I know what effect this would have on the game. 35 minutes pass and we get another corner which De Guzman puts on the edge of the 6-yard area again. Chico makes a run from the back post across his man and thumps his header into the net. GOAL, Swansea 2-0 Cardiff (Chico)

As half time approached a swansea attack broke down. Whittingham played in Andreas Cornelius, who ran through and lifted his finish over the advancing Michel Vorm. The goal was scored in the second minute of injury time, when there was only supposed to be one. Naturally I was fuming! GOAL, Swansea 2-1 Cardiff (Cornelius)

Half time!

I sent the boys out there with an encouraging team talk for the second half but the game started slowly. I was just starting to think about changes to tactics and players when De Guzman curls in a freekick to the back post on the 65th minute. Chico rises..... Boom! Hits the post! Ball cannons back to his feet for a tap in... Get in! GOAL, Swansea 3-1 Cardiff (Chico)

That two goal advantage put me at ease, but only for about 10 minutes. Craig Bellamy puts a corner into the box, where a clearing header only reaches Peter Whittingham on the edge of the area, he shoots at goal but his shot hits his own man.. bounces back to him for an easy goal though. GOAL, Swansea 3-2 Cardiff (Whittingham)

So we were in for a nervy last 15 minutes. With 9 minutes of normal time remaining, a quick throw finds Pablo Hernandez alone on the edge of the Cardiff box. His low drive is more than enough to beat the sprawling keeper and give Swansea the win. GOAL, Swansea 4-2 Cardiff (Hernandez)

Full time!

Very happy to get a first derby win under my belt and take them down a peg or two. Naturally Chico got man of the match.

Speaking of taking them down a peg or two, Malky thought he'd have a pop at before after the game so...

Swim away Malky son.. Swim away!

December

Probably the biggest month of the season in terms of games. They come thick and fast over Christmas time and I had a lot of work to do to rescue my situation. So after that Cardiff win my results were...

League - Crystal Palace 1-2 Swansea (Vazquez, Bony) - They actually gave us a good game but we probably just about deserved to win it.

Euro Cup - Red Star 2-3 Swansea (Vazquez 2, Routledge) - Bit of a nothing game so I put the backup players in and went on the attack. Decent win.

League Cup - Swansea 2-0 Walsall (AET) (Bony 2) - Played some youngsters and had to rely on Bony to come off the bench and seal it in extra time. Surprisingly tough!

League - Tottenham 3-0 Swansea - Embarrassed ourselves. Didn't compete and got what we deserved.

League - Swansea 4-3 Liverpool (Bony 2, Michu, De Guzman) - 2-0 up at HT and went 3-2 down to a Suarez hat-trick. Nice to show a bit of bottle to win it!

League - Newcastle 4-0 Swansea - Worst result so far. Scoreline was harsh but deserved to lose. Poor.

League - Fulham 3-2 Swansea (Lamah, De Guzman) - Darren Bent nicked them the 3 points in an even game. Could have gone either way.

So forms picked up a little, still some major work to do though. January window is open so De Guzman, Vazquez and Lamah are all permanent signings now and Keisuke Honda is also in. Going to sell Britton now, he's already lost his place to Zuculini. Liverpool have tabled a 3 million bid and at 31, it's the right time.

January 2014

So January came, and with it the opportunity to sell a few players and bring a few in. However, as I previously said, I'd already agreed deals for Lamah, De Guzman, Honda and Vazquez which left me with no budget and over my wage budget. I sold Leon Britton to Liverpool for £3 million and used it all to up my wage budget. The only other players who left were Alan Tate to Middlesborough for 300k, Curtis Obeng to Rangers for 100k and Lee Lucas to Rangers for 57k.

Results

FA Cup 3rd - Blackpool 0-2 Swansea (Dyer 2) - Comfortable win. Chance for some backup players to get a game.

League Cup Semi Leg 1 - Swansea 2-0 Reading (Shelvey, Balanta) - Another comfortable win. Set up nicely for 2nd leg.

League - Man City 2-1 Swansea (Bony) - Competed really well and deserved at least a draw. Their quality shone in the end.

League - Swansea 4-0 Hull (Bony, Lamah, Michu, Shelvey) - Well deserved win, finally taking advantage of our dominance in games.

League - Swansea 3-0 Aston Villa (Lamah, Bony 2) - Scoreline flattered us a little but another deserved win.

League Cup Semi Leg 2 - Reading 1-2 Swansea (Dyer 2) - Solid win. Nice to be in with a chance of retaining the cup!

FA Cup 4th - Swansea 0-0 Charlton - Disappointing performance from the youngsters, won't be so naive in the replay.

League - Swansea 2-2 Southampton (Bony, Hernandez) - Should have won it. The pinched an equaliser late on from a corner.

So results are going the right way again now. Moving towards the top half of the table finally. Surprisingly, Stoke beat Man United 3-1 on aggregate in the other League Cup Semi so that's a real chance of silverware at Wembley now!

February

Results

League - West Ham 0-1 Swansea (Michu) - Dominated the game but had to wait til the 95th minute to score. Lucky!

FA Cup 4th replay - Charlton 0-3 Swansea (Pozuelo 2, Routledge) - Played a more experienced team this time and coasted through to round 5.

League - Swansea 2-0 Arsenal (Lamah 2) - Surprisingly comfortable win. They never put up a fight. Lamah is in fine form!

League - Swansea 1-0 Stoke (Routledge) - Even game, which we probably just deserved to edge. Nice to beat them before out Cup final in a few weeks!

FA Cup 5th - Derby 2-2 Swansea (Routledge, Honda) - Went 2-0 down and thought we'd be crashing out. Better second half but still disappointing.

League - Swansea 3-0 Everton (Bony, Dyer, Michu) - Comfortable home win against what would usually be tough opposition.

FA Cup 5th replay - Swansea 2-0 Derby (AET) (Bony, Michu) - Struggled in normal time. Brought on the big guns off the bench to win it for me.

So all in all February has been a great month. Undefeated in all competitions and winning every league game. Next game is the Carling Cup final against Stoke.

Anyone else playing as the swans then or is it just me?

Just started a Swansea save myself. Like most, admire a lot of what they have achieved the list few years and how they go about it. Also love the balance of the current squad.

That said, I made a few changes, probably too many which means I will suffer from lack of chemistry the first few months. However:

IN

Balanta - £9.5million (about half it in instalments) - The big money signing. He is too good to pass up, even though a strong area to start with, this guy could be one of the best in the world

Simone Pepe - £85k per month loan - Really like this guys attributes, brought in to be my inversed IF on the left wing. A class above Lamah and a real goal threat. Got an agreed £3million clause as well

Zuculini - Free - Not too sure I did the right thing here, but to pay for Balanta I sold Britton to Liverpool. Once I had done that Zuculini was a natural free replacement

Marian Kello - Free - Replacement for Tremmel, less than half the wage and a few years younger. Never prem quality but fine as back up.

Gabriel Barbosa - £2million - Top talent for the future, but best part of 2 years before he actually arrives!

Out

Britton - £3.5million - Liverpool came in form him, and I really wasn't sure. He is 30 and I needed the cash, so accepted the bid. I might miss him

Tremmel - £100K - Got an offer from 1860 munchen and took it, he is 34 and on too much money for a back up keeper

Monk - £60k - Palace took him. He would be 5th choice in his position and was on too good a wage for that

Lita - Free - Sheff Wed took him for zero. Good riddance to £11K per week off the wage bill!

Im all out of transfer funds and only £7K left in the wage budget, so probably stuck with what I have. I would have liked to potentially move on Routledge or Dyer as neither are going to get a lot of starts and are on good wages. No interest in them, so will keep them as back ups.

I am playing a fluid, counter attack with a slightly funky formation 2 x DC, 2 x WB, 1x Anchor(DMRC slot), 1 x DLP (MLC slot) 1 x APM (AMRC slot) 1 x W(AMR slot), 1 x IF (AML slot) and 1 x DLF (STLC slot).

Pre-season was easy as normal, on to the real games now!

Just started a Swansea save myself. Like most, admire a lot of what they have achieved the list few years and how they go about it. Also love the balance of the current squad.

That said, I made a few changes, probably too many which means I will suffer from lack of chemistry the first few months. However:

IN

Balanta - £9.5million (about half it in instalments) - The big money signing. He is too good to pass up, even though a strong area to start with, this guy could be one of the best in the world

Simone Pepe - £85k per month loan - Really like this guys attributes, brought in to be my inversed IF on the left wing. A class above Lamah and a real goal threat. Got an agreed £3million clause as well

Zuculini - Free - Not too sure I did the right thing here, but to pay for Balanta I sold Britton to Liverpool. Once I had done that Zuculini was a natural free replacement

Marian Kello - Free - Replacement for Tremmel, less than half the wage and a few years younger. Never prem quality but fine as back up.

Gabriel Barbosa - £2million - Top talent for the future, but best part of 2 years before he actually arrives!

Out

Britton - £3.5million - Liverpool came in form him, and I really wasn't sure. He is 30 and I needed the cash, so accepted the bid. I might miss him

Tremmel - £100K - Got an offer from 1860 munchen and took it, he is 34 and on too much money for a back up keeper

Monk - £60k - Palace took him. He would be 5th choice in his position and was on too good a wage for that

Lita - Free - Sheff Wed took him for zero. Good riddance to £11K per week off the wage bill!

Im all out of transfer funds and only £7K left in the wage budget, so probably stuck with what I have. I would have liked to potentially move on Routledge or Dyer as neither are going to get a lot of starts and are on good wages. No interest in them, so will keep them as back ups.

I am playing a fluid, counter attack with a slightly funky formation 2 x DC, 2 x WB, 1x Anchor(DMRC slot), 1 x DLP (MLC slot) 1 x APM (AMRC slot) 1 x W(AMR slot), 1 x IF (AML slot) and 1 x DLF (STLC slot).

Pre-season was easy as normal, on to the real games now!

Nice to know I'm not the only one playing as the Swans.

Couple of things about your transfer business. Firstly, you probably won't miss Britton because of Zuculini. He's been solid for me so you were right to take the cash. Simone Pepe is a good signing but very injury prone from what I have seen so far. I had the chance to pick him up for his asking price of £0 along with Ibrahim Afellay, but my wage budget was already over so couldn't offer them decent money. Also, don't underestimate Lamah, he's been awesome for me, best average rating in the squad. Also, nice work with Barbosa. I tried to pick him up at the start of mine but he went to Real Madrid.

Interesting formation. Something you've thrown together for this save or tried and tested with a different club?

March

Probably the biggest month of the season. Carling Cup final, FA Cup quarter finals, the welsh derby at legoland and Home games against Man United and Chelsea. There was lot's to look forward to and this is how it all panned out....

League Cup Final

The first bit of silverware under my reign as Swansea manager! Absolutely buzzing! As you can see from the stats, the scoreline flatters them a little because we absolutely dominated the game from the first minute to the last. Roland Lamah was in inspired form and got the winning goal and the man of the match. It's nice to retain the Cup and even nicer to know that no matter how the rest of the season goes, we're guaranteed to be playing European football this year - something that was important to me after such an awful showing this season.

Other results

FA Cup QTR - Southampton 3-3 Swansea (Lamah, Michu, Bony) - An evenly matched game which entertained. Making a habit of these replays, not that I want to!

League - Swansea 1-1 Chelsea (Bony) - How Chelsea didn't win this I will never know. Tremmel was immense(Vorms injured). Definitely happy with a point.

League - West Brom 0-1 Swansea (Bony) - Scored early on and never looked like conceding.

FA Cup QTR replay - Swansea 2-0 Southampton (Hernandez, Pozuelo) - Another even game despite them having Lallana sent off after 11 mins. Happy to be through!

League - Swansea 1-2 Man United (Michu) - Our undefeated run in the league stops at 9 games and our run for all competitions at 17 games. Game could have gone either way but I guess luck had to run out somewhere.

League - Sundeland 1-4 Swansea (Bony 2, De Guzman, Shelvey) - Nice to bounce back after the loss. Emphatic win away from home! Bony is on fire!

.. and finally, the derby!

We went 1-0 up through Hernandez on the half hour mark. Buzzing! Cardiff pegged up back from the kick off though through Cornelius and 5 minutes later Ashley Williams gets a straight red(his third of the season) for a wreckless challenge. I thought I was in for trouble, so I wanted to go down fighting. I got ballsy and played Balanta as lone CB. Nothing else about my tactic changed, I just wanted to attack them and try outscoring them. We seemed to be keeping possession as well as normal so I stuck with it. Pozuelo came off the bench to score on the 75th and I had a tactical reshuffle then to hold on to a precious victory at legoland!

So another great month for the club. Currently sitting in 6th with 6 games to go. Spurs are on the same points in 5th but with better goal difference and a game in hand. Newcastle are somehow in 4th, 7 clear of me so it will take a miracle to get Champions League places but we'll give it our best.

Here's a screenshot of the league table, where you can see that Cardiff are facing a relegation battle. Biggest shock is City though. Whoops!!!

Did a couple more bits of business before the window closed:

In

Thomas Drage - £475K - Tromso - A versatile youngster who I have had in previous saves and found very dependable. Covers AML/AMR/AMC/ST and can even fill in at MC if required. Hernandez injured for 3 months prompted me to pull the trigger on this one. He is cup tied for Europa which is a pain

Out

Chico Flores - £2million - Osasuna - With Balanta, Williams and Amat all in front of him, had to take the hard decision to cash in on Chico. Decent fee and freed up more wage

Routledge - Loan - Celtic - Paying 80% of his wage with a £2million agreed fee. He was out of the picture in my squad so moved him on to save on wages and avoid squad harmony issues.

And that's the window closed. Will write up August results later tonight if I get the chance, for now beer is calling

April

Results

League - Swansea 2-3 Crystal Palace (Lamah, Bony) - The most frustrating game of my career so far. They seemed to create nothing, and yet score 3 goals. We struggled to put ball in net.

League - Swansea 3-3 Norwich (Michu, Lamah, Ruddy o.g.) - Form has gone down the pan. More points thrown away at home. This time we were lucky to get a draw.

FA Cup Semi - Swansea 3-2 Tottenham (Bony 3) - Scoreline suggests a close game but we really put them to the sword. Another final on the way!

League - Hull 2-2 Swansea (Bony, Dyer) - Went 2-0 up very early but threw it away. More points down the drain. Not a good month.

League - Liverpool 2-1 Swansea (Lamah) - Gave a good account of ourselves but probably just about deserved to lose.

So all in all, not a good month in the league at all. I would have expected to pick up between 7-10 points from those 4 games and came away with 2. Terrible. Really happy to have made the FA Cup final though, and my opponents will be Newcastle who seem to be coasting into the Champions League next year in 4th spot.

May

We only had two league games left to play and were sitting in 7th after a poor April. Liverpool were now on our tails and wanting the 7th spot. Quite frankly I didn't mind finishing 7th or 8th, my main focus was going to be on trying to win that FA Cup final.

Results

League - Swansea 2-3 Tottenham (Dawson o.g., Shelvey) - They were clinical and we didn't create enough. Our poor league form continues..

League - Swansea 1-3 Newcastle (Bony) - They took an early lead and then Zuculini got sent off. I never looked like winning. I had to hope we could get revenge at Wembley 6 days later.

The FA Cup Final!

Two domestic cups in one season, YES!! Quite a cagey affair but we created the more telling opportunities and took them. Wilfried Bony's goalscoring exploits have pretty much made my season and long may it continue.

Season one review

Competitions

League performance

We ended up finishing 8th in the league, which I would have taken given the terrible start to the season we had. I almost got sacked in Nov/Dec. Highlights of the season were doing the double over Cardiff, who eventually avoided relegation on the last day, and an excellent 2-0 win over Arsenal at the Emirates. Here's the final league table..

I know what you're thinking.... HAHAHAHA Man City.

League Cup

Retained the League Cup with a win over Stoke in the Final. Didn't really play anyone good along the way, but you can only beat what's put infront of you I guess!

FA Cup

Also won this, which I think is an incredible feat for the first season. Again the draw probably favoured me but I still beat Southampton and Spurs on my way to beating Newcastle in the final. Wilfried Bony pretty much won this Cup on his own, scoring 5 goals in the Semi and Final alone.

Euro Cup

The biggest disappointment of the season. To go out at the group stages is an embarrassment and something I will be looking to put right next season. It wasn't an easy group, but one I would have expected to come through. Can't help but feel that the loss to Red Star at home was probably the most telling loss of the season.

Player performances

Roland Lamah

Wanted to kick this off by saying how incredible this man was. Despite spending some of the season injured, he managed to play 45 games(35 starts), score 16 goals and get 12 assists, all from the LW position. He also won English Footballer of the year! I bought him outright in January for 2.2m and he is now valued at £10.75m. Also bagged the LM spot in Team of the year, not bad!!

Wilfried Bony

Wilfried had a very solid season. He was our main goal threat throughout the season and managed to net 31 times in 56 games(45 starts). His value has risen to 18.75m. Finished top scorer in the Premiership and made the starting 11 in Team of the year.

Michu

Also had a good season, playing most of his football behind Bony in an attacking midfield role. Managed to score 16 goals and get 14 assists. Now valued at 16.75m.

Anyone wanting screenshots of any players, just ask!

going to start a Swansea save later any advice on tactic as i cant seem to make a good one this years fm any help would be greatly appreciated

August

Results

Europa Qualifier - Swansea 5 v 2 IFK Goteborg (Bony x3, Williams, Pozuelo) - Comfortable start, and nice to see the goals fly in

Europa Qualifier - IFK Goteborg 2 v 2 Swansea (Dyer, Amat) - changed 11 players, a little meaningless

Premier Division - Swansea 1 v 1 Everton (Pozuelo) - Without Bony now through injury for the rest of the month, we had far more chances but will take a draw against a tough side

Europa Qualifier - Zulte Waregem 1 v 2 Swansea (Hernandez, Henry Jones) - again rested a few and nice to bring on a young prospect and have him score on his debut

Premier Division - Aston Villa 1 v 3 Swansea (Simone Pepe x 2, Canas) - A good win, and good to see goals coming from different areas of the pitch

Europa Qualifier - Swansea 0 v 0 Zulte Waregem - A real nothing of a game with mostly back up players, but sees us into the group stages

Not a bad start, early days but we are missing Bony who is due back early September and now Hernandez out for 2 - 3 months. Need to get a little more from Michu and Vasquez not looking brilliant when given his chance due to Bony injury

September

Results

Prem - Swansea 2 v 2 West Ham (Michu, Lamah) - Frustrating, conceded a stupid last minute equaliser

Prem - Swansea 1 v 1 Stoke (Bony) - Another disappointing one, to draw at home. We were marginally the better side but had to come from behind. Team not yet gelled

Europa - HJK 1 v 3 Swansea (Dyer, Vasquez, Pepe) - Comfortable against modest opposition, good for Vasquez to finally get a goal

Prem - Crystal Palace 1 v 1 Swansea (Drage) _ Yet another draw, against poor opposition. Tactics not too effective at the moment

Cap 1 cup - Liverpool 2 v 0 Swansea - We actually were the better team, even with a few rotations, but 2 awful mistakes at the back mean no cup retention

Prem - Chelsea 0 v 1 Swansea (Michu) - Amazing result, we went in mega defensive, sat deep and frustrated. Had to against a team this good. A Michu Pen following a breakaway won it for us.

Actually sitting 5th after 6 games and unbeaten in the league, although to be fair the fixtures have not been the hardest thus far. 3 EPL fixtures next month..Newcastle, Man U, Arsenal.......

Still messing with tactics to get something I like. Clearly cant play the same way against Chelsea away as against Norwich at home, and seemed to find a good defensive tactic but need the attacking one as I want to play with flair and possession.

I'm playing as Spurs and picked up Michu at the end of the first season when Swansea went down (has happened in a couple of saves I've had - seem very underrated). Anyway, I'm struggling to get him performing; he's nervous or very nervous during most games despite my best efforts to calm him down in private chats and team talks.

He's generally playing as the Treqartista in this formation:

Any suggestions to get his confidence back and get him firing?

going to start a Swansea save later any advice on tactic as i cant seem to make a good one this years fm any help would be greatly appreciated

I would go for the 4-2-3-1 formation with two CM's and a LW, RW and CAM. I can upload my tactic if it'd be any use to you?

I'm playing as Spurs and picked up Michu at the end of the first season when Swansea went down (has happened in a couple of saves I've had - seem very underrated). Anyway, I'm struggling to get him performing; he's nervous or very nervous during most games despite my best efforts to calm him down in private chats and team talks.

He's generally playing as the Treqartista in this formation:

Any suggestions to get his confidence back and get him firing?

I'll be honest, I use him in the same role in a slightly different formation. He's not really a world beater for me but does a steady job. Persevere with him whike he settles, that's all I can suggest.

October

Results

Europa - Swansea 3 v 1 AZ (Lamah, Shelvey, Williams) - nice comfortable win at home in Europe, even with squad rotation for these games

Prem - Swansea 2 v 1 Newcastle (de Guzman, O.G) - Good win over a similar level of side, without playing overly well

Prem - Man U 2 v 0 Swansea - Totally outclassed, played defensive and it could have been more

Europa - Red Ball Salzburg 1 v 3 Swansea (Bony x 2, Dyer) - Full pts in Europe, was never really in doubt this one, good for Bony to get back in the goals

Prem - Liverpool 3 v 1 Swansea (Lamah pen) - Annoyingly didn't play at all well, butt found ourself in the lead, only for Liverpool to come back at us strongly. We weren't good enough to compete.

A mixed month overall, but I still haven't found a tactical set up I am happy with. Chopping and changing too much. Not getting the best from Michu or Bony is the big down side so far. Michu now out for 2 months as well, testing our depth.

That said, we are 11th and pretty much qualified in Europe already, and we have got a few tough league fixtures out the way so should kick on to the top half.

Top notch thread! Just started my Swans save.

Results:

Europa Swans 3 v 0 FC Inter (Williams, Dyer, Shelvey) - Easy win

Europa FC Inter 2 v Swans 1 (Lamah) - dominated the game but lost. Thru to next round

Prem LFC 1 v Swans 0 - didn't create much as we got dominated

Europa Swans 3 v Grasshoppers 1 (Williams, Michu, Vazquez)

Prem Swans 2 v NUFC 3 (Dyer, Michu) controlled the game but let it go late on an OG

Europa Grasshoppers 2 v Swans 1 (Vazquez) another game where I totally control the game but let up a late winner. Still thru to the group stage.

Tactics - Using a 4231 with wingers and amc or a 433 with dmc and 2 mc, the two wingers are set as IF's. Have my DL and DR set as Complete Wing Back. Tinkering with another formation that uses two AMCs and playing a narrow. All my tactics are set for control and I look to dominate possession. As soon as I figure out Screenshots I will post my tactics if they are any good.

Top notch thread! Just started my Swans save.

Results:

Europa Swans 3 v 0 FC Inter (Williams, Dyer, Shelvey) - Easy win

Europa FC Inter 2 v Swans 1 (Lamah) - dominated the game but lost. Thru to next round

Prem LFC 1 v Swans 0 - didn't create much as we got dominated

Europa Swans 3 v Grasshoppers 1 (Williams, Michu, Vazquez)

Prem Swans 2 v NUFC 3 (Dyer, Michu) controlled the game but let it go late on an OG

Europa Grasshoppers 2 v Swans 1 (Vazquez) another game where I totally control the game but let up a late winner. Still thru to the group stage.

Tactics - Using a 4231 with wingers and amc or a 433 with dmc and 2 mc, the two wingers are set as IF's. Have my DL and DR set as Complete Wing Back. Tinkering with another formation that uses two AMCs and playing a narrow. All my tactics are set for control and I look to dominate possession. As soon as I figure out Screenshots I will post my tactics if they are any good.

Firstly, welcome to the forums. Nice to see there's a few of us playing as the swans now. Made any signings?

Update coming soon on my summer tranfer dealings! Lot's of activity!(Probably too much)

Transfers In:

Balanta - 8.5 Million - just couldn't resist. 25k wage but has a 25 M release clause

Zivkovic - 550K - one for the future

Zuculini - Free - always been on my radar since FM12 I believe. Still has some upside

Nekounam - 500K - deadline day signing due to the long term injury to De Guzman. 32 year old but good enough for a couple seasons in the Premier

Out:

Ki-Sung - 3.5 M to Sunderland - I don't rate him much so was happy to get the cash

Monk - 240K - wasn't going to play much so I let him move on due to past service to the club

Due to injury (torn hamstring - out 4-5 months) I cancelled the loan of De Guzman. I am not a fan of his anyways due to his turning his back on his country (Canada).

So far I have progressed to the group stages of the Europa League but lost my first two EPL games. Seem to control most games but not clinical enough in the attacking end. Bony has started 4 games but has no goals but Michu is a beast for me even though he has only scored twice. Vorm has not played particularily well and I even had Zabret play the Euro Cup games.

September

Before my matches Hernanadez injured two months with ligament damage in training. Of course it happens right after the deadline.

Prem Man City 0 v Swans 1 (Michu) - Suprise result as they totally dominated. Lost the possession battle by a wide margin (65 to 35) and shots at goal were 28 - 6.

Prem Stoke 0 v Swans 2 (Michu, OG) - Michu is really playing well for me at the moment.

Europa Slovan Bratislava 1 v Swans 3 (Canas, Lamah and Vazquez) - good road win but we lost the shutout in extra time to an OG.

League Cup Swans 2 v Blackpool 4 (Dyer, Michu) - my quest to defend the cup is over in the first round. They really deserved the win and it came against a really strong side. I was 3-0 down at half but pulled it back to 3-2, but that was as close as we came. Really let the team have it after the match.

Prem Swans 1 v Norwich 0 - scoreline was close but we played them off the park. 70/30 possession and they had 1 shot at goal while we had 14 on target with 4 clear scoring chances. Ruddy was amazing and was MOM.

All in all a good month. 3 out of 3 in the league and a win in Europe. Would have liked to have gone farther in the League Cup but we have bigger targets this year.

This doesn't really count, but I just destroyed Cardiff 5-0 in the FA Cup.

http://gyazo.com/c2a419ed6593cba5a412b92d4a0b949d

September

Before my matches Hernanadez injured two months with ligament damage in training. Of course it happens right after the deadline.

Prem Man City 0 v Swans 1 (Michu) - Suprise result as they totally dominated. Lost the possession battle by a wide margin (65 to 35) and shots at goal were 28 - 6.

Prem Stoke 0 v Swans 2 (Michu, OG) - Michu is really playing well for me at the moment.

Europa Slovan Bratislava 1 v Swans 3 (Canas, Lamah and Vazquez) - good road win but we lost the shutout in extra time to an OG.

League Cup Swans 2 v Blackpool 4 (Dyer, Michu) - my quest to defend the cup is over in the first round. They really deserved the win and it came against a really strong side. I was 3-0 down at half but pulled it back to 3-2, but that was as close as we came. Really let the team have it after the match.

Prem Swans 1 v Norwich 0 - scoreline was close but we played them off the park. 70/30 possession and they had 1 shot at goal while we had 14 on target with 4 clear scoring chances. Ruddy was amazing and was MOM.

All in all a good month. 3 out of 3 in the league and a win in Europe. Would have liked to have gone farther in the League Cup but we have bigger targets this year.

Nice to see things have picked up in the league. Hell of a win against City.

This doesn't really count, but I just destroyed Cardiff 5-0 in the FA Cup.

http://gyazo.com/c2a419ed6593cba5a412b92d4a0b949d

Haha no, it doesn't count but it still makes great viewing!

November

Results

Prem - Swansea 2 v 1 Arsenal (Bony, Lamah) - A great win, we were 2 nil up at half time and we deserved, sat back a little second half but comfortable. First match with new tactic as well

Europa - Swansea 4 v 1 Red Bull Salzburg (Pozuelo x 2, Bony, Lee Lucas) - Nice win, with another youngest getting a debut goal in this competition. Pozuelo playing well

Prem - Swansea 2 v 1 West Brom (Bony x 2) - A good win, well deserved and Bony in the goals. New tactic working nicely

Prem - Norwich 2 v 2 Swansea (Lamah, Pozuelo) - Massively annoying, conceded a last minute equaliser after being the better side, even without both first choice strikers.

Europa - Swansea 0 v 2 HJK - Not acceptable, even though already qualified pretty much. 2 more goals conceded from set pieces and although we had more of the game, no cutting edge. Gave the team a rocket after this result

Other news

*Bony out 6 weeks with a sports hernia

*Michu missed second half of the month with Injury

*Only just realised that on FM14 u can try to sell a player who is on loan, to the loan club (couldn't do it on 13 I don't think?) - So Ki has been sold for 3.5million to Sunderland and Routledge to Celtic for only £350K. Bartley was going to Bham for £500K but then got injured and failed his medical.

*Used the funds from KI to sign Lamah on a perm - have been sold on him by some great performances, more so than De Guzman or Vasquez

October Update

Europa Swans 2 v Rapid Wien 0 (Dyer, Pozuelo) - Solid win at home with largely a second string side

Prem Cardiff 2 v Swans 2 (Rangel, Michu) - controlled the game but they scored two counter attacks from their new striker Toivenen. Was up 1-0 and 2-1 but couldn't hold the lead

Prem Swans 1 v Spurs 1 (Pozuelo) - very even game and managed to secure the tie with a late Pozuelo strike. He has played really well for me this season

Europa Swans 3 v Fiorentina 3 - (Bony, Dyer 2) - finally Bony has scored but it took him till his 10th appearance. Came off the bench at half as we were down 3-1 and rescued the team with an assist and the game tying goal. Was beginning to get a little worried.

Prem Villa 0 v Swans 0 - another of those games where I am dominating but not getting enough scoring opportunities in the final third. At least I kept the clean sheet.

Real mixed bag what with the three draws in the Prem. Looking good to go thru my group in the Europa League. Injuries have started to cause havoc as I have no healthy wingers as Hernandez (out another month, was about to come back and was reinjured) Dyer (4 weeks) Routledge (4 weeks) and Lamah (2 weeks) are all injured at the same time. Time to use my 41221 tactic with no wingers, and playing narrow and thru the middle.

December

Results

Prem - Swansea 1 v 1 Southampton (Taylor) - Took a late equaliser to get a draw here, reasonably even match but we struggled to impose ourselves, still without Bony and Michu

Prem - Cardiff 0 v 1 Swansea (Turner OG) - The big one! we still didn't play great, but a superb own goal volley meant we won the derby, huge win

Europa - AZ 1 v 1 Swansea (Michu) - Michu scoring on his return from injury was about the only positive in a fairly drab draw

Prem - Swansea 1 v 3 Fulham (Davies) - Absolutely shocking. We were 3 nil down and deserved it. Nothing positive out of this game

Prem - Hull 3 v 2 Swansea (Lamah, Michu) - Our defending is beyond a joke now, we concede so many bad goals its really frustrating me

Prem - Swansea 3 v 3 Man City (Hernandez, Vasquez, OG) - Weird game, 2 nil down after 20mins, fought back and then went 3 v 2 down only to equalise late. Outplayed though

Prem - Sunderland 4 v 1 Swansea (Pozuelo) - A new low for us, was tempted to fine the entire squad we were so bad. 4 nil down within an hour. Cant defend a set piece

Prem - Totenham 1 v 1 Swansea (Zuculini) - A hard fixture so a point no disaster, but defensively still not at the races

Prem - Everton 3 v 3 Swansea (Lamah, Bony, Pozuelo) - Again a hard fixture, but im tearing my hair out at our defending now.

An absolute howler of a month. One league win, then 6 games without a win. We are 11th at the midway point which isn't quite good enough. THe tactics clearly are not working, and I need to find a way to shore things up defensively. Need Michu and Bony to stay fit for a while now, and to come up with a better tactic.

Transfer window open and I have a £6.5million budget following the board accepting a request for funds. At the moment not sure who I want to spend it on. Of the 2 remaining loanees with clauses, Vasquez has been terrible (one goal in 16 appearances) and De Guzman average at best. Feels like a striker needed to support Bony, or an AMC to allow Pozuelo to move forward (he backs up Michu now).

Summer Transfer Window

Although last season went well, I still felt the need for a bit more quality and depth in the squad. The main area of the squad that was desperate for improvement was the rightback spot, Angel Rangel was 31 and on the decline, and had also started to pick up a few more injuries. Jazz Richards and Dwight Tiendalli were simply not good enough to cover so the position needed a complete overhaul.

Players out

Players in

So my current squad looks a bit like this...

GK: First choice - Vorm....Back up - Schmeichel

RB: First choice - Corchia....Back up - Smith

LB: First choice - Davies....Back up - Taylor

LCB: First choice - Balanta....Back up - Amat

RCB: First choice - Williams....Back up - Bellusci

CM(def): First choice - Allen....Back up - Shelvey/Jones

CM: First choice - Honda....Back up - Holtby/Roberto

RW: First choice - Hernandez....Back up - Dyer

LW: First choice - Marin....Back up - Routledge

AMC: First choice - Michu....Back up - Pozuelo

ST: First choice - Bony....Back up - Vazquez/ Borini

With a few youngsters lurking about like Pagano and Thompson who may come in for cup games.

August Results

Charity Shield - Chelsea 1-0 Swansea - We gave it a go but they deserved to win.

League - Tottenham 1-1 Swansea (Bellusci) - Even game. Happy with a point from a tough first outing.

League - Swansea 2-4 Liverpool (Bony, Michu) - Seems like everything Liverpool touch turns to gold on this game. We should have won. They were lucky.

League - Man United 1-1 Swansea (Hernandez) - A 93rd minute equaliser got us a point. Very happy.

So tough start to the season but happy so far, apart from the Liverpool game. Looking forward to this season now!

Some good business there dude, and nice to have a chunk of money to spend.

Are you not gonna have mega problems with the home grown rule in the CL and even in the EPL? I am struggling to get 8 in my squad mid way through season one, and looks like you might be up against it a bit.

January transfer window for me, new striker is the priority, im changing tactics again and going radical.........3 at the back time..........

Some good business there dude, and nice to have a chunk of money to spend.

Are you not gonna have mega problems with the home grown rule in the CL and even in the EPL? I am struggling to get 8 in my squad mid way through season one, and looks like you might be up against it a bit.

January transfer window for me, new striker is the priority, im changing tactics again and going radical.........3 at the back time..........

Home grown at club - Ben Davies, Joe Allen

Home grown in country - Davies, Allen, Shelvey, Dyer, Routledge, Taylor, Smith, Schmeichel, Williams, Borini.

So I have to have two spaces to meet the 4 home grown at club quota. Need some youth players to start coming through.

I've never tried a formation with 3 CB's. Guessing you'll have wingbacks then?

Not far off then, ive let Routledge go, I need to sign some more home grown players it feels, at least in the country, and hope for at least one good enough player in the youth intake.

No wingbacks for me, I always find defensive wingers perform far better. Lamah out for 3 months, and Rangel was playing rubbish. Made the decision easier for me. Taylor can play as a DW one side and Hernandez/Dyer can just about play that role on the other. Also means I can give Amat some playing time, as I really like him.

Jan Transfer business so far:

Out

Richards - 1.6million - reading - Never a prem player, had to take that much cash. Shame to lose a home grown but needed the funds to rebuild

Tiendalli - £500K - Hereneveen - Also never a prem play, wages off the wage bill as he was never playing, and formation change means no need for him

Rangel - £100K - Valladolid - To complete the trio of right backs leaving. Good servant but on his way downhill

In

Stefan Strandberg - £750K - Rosenborg - A FM fav of mine, always solid and dependable and cheapish. Will serve as 4th CB and can also cover DMC where we are a bit short

Paulo Dybala - £6.5million - Palermo - Scouts raved about him, he is only 20 and looks a real player. If im going to push on for top 6 need 3 top class strikers and he is the third

Also terminated Vasquez loan. He was rubbish, and then got injured for 4 months which made the decision easy.

Out of cash for transfers, with a little bit of wage budget left. Could do with another Centre Mid, and Darren Fletcher is on the transfer list but his £70K per week out of my range

Not far off then, ive let Routledge go, I need to sign some more home grown players it feels, at least in the country, and hope for at least one good enough player in the youth intake.

No wingbacks for me, I always find defensive wingers perform far better. Lamah out for 3 months, and Rangel was playing rubbish. Made the decision easier for me. Taylor can play as a DW one side and Hernandez/Dyer can just about play that role on the other. Also means I can give Amat some playing time, as I really like him.

Jan Transfer business so far:

Out

Richards - 1.6million - reading - Never a prem player, had to take that much cash. Shame to lose a home grown but needed the funds to rebuild

Tiendalli - £500K - Hereneveen - Also never a prem play, wages off the wage bill as he was never playing, and formation change means no need for him

Rangel - £100K - Valladolid - To complete the trio of right backs leaving. Good servant but on his way downhill

In

Stefan Strandberg - £750K - Rosenborg - A FM fav of mine, always solid and dependable and cheapish. Will serve as 4th CB and can also cover DMC where we are a bit short

Paulo Dybala - £6.5million - Palermo - Scouts raved about him, he is only 20 and looks a real player. If im going to push on for top 6 need 3 top class strikers and he is the third

Also terminated Vasquez loan. He was rubbish, and then got injured for 4 months which made the decision easy.

Out of cash for transfers, with a little bit of wage budget left. Could do with another Centre Mid, and Darren Fletcher is on the transfer list but his £70K per week out of my range

Interested to know what you'll be doing with Ben Davies then? Retraining? Man United are interested in him in my game at the moment.

Vazquez is doing pretty well for me, but Dybala is a great player. Signed him a few times on FM13.

January

Results

FA cup - Swansea 1 v 1 Brentford (Drage) - The embarrassing performances continued, and it took a late goal to avoid a terrible upset. At this point the formation change was decided

Prem - West Ham 1 v 3 Swansea (Michu x 2, Shelvey) - A nice start to the new formation, attacking with some zip and defensively a bit better, although no clean sheet

FA cup - Brentford 0 v 3 Swansea (Bony, Pozuelo, OG) - Job done at second time of asking, was tied up by half time

Prem - Swansea 2 v 1 Villa (De Guzman, Bony) - Comfortable performance, feels like things turning round. Should have scored more and had a late scare

Fa Cup - Swansea 2 v 1 Watford (Amat, Dyer) - Rested a few players and Watford made a game of it, but safely through

Prem - Swansea 2 v 0 Palace (Hernandez, Taylor) - We are on a roll now, the wide boys getting the job done. This one was never really in doubt, could've had a hatful if Michu was on form

So, that's a much much better month. After the formation change, we won every game. Up to 7th in the table and in to the last 16 in the FA cup. Europa last 16 tie against Frankfurt to come in Feb as well.

Also reasonably pleased with the months transfer business, a top class CM was out of my reach, but that will be top of the shopping list come the close season, along with a better DM than Canas/Zuculini. My scout says Allen is available for £5mill, but his wages could be an issue.

With Davies, at the moment retraining him to play ML, and playing him there some games. He does just fine. Also toying with retraining him as a CB to play left side of a back 3. His major weakness would be in the air, but otherwise could make a great centre half in a 3.

Also reasonably pleased with the months transfer business, a top class CM was out of my reach, but that will be top of the shopping list come the close season, along with a better DM than Canas/Zuculini. My scout says Allen is available for £5mill, but his wages could be an issue.

You should try and get Holtby mate. He's usually transfer-listed for £5,000,000 and accepts 70k a week. He's been an absolute steal for my side so far ..

November

Prem Swans 3 v Hull 1 (Davies Michu Bony) - Bony's first home EPL goal gets the fans rocking as we crush the suprising 4th place Hull

Prem Swans 5 v Fulham 1 (Taylor Michu Bony Vazquez Davies) - absolutely dominant performance from the Swans. Fulham opened the score in the 2nd minute but had 1 shot the rest of the way as the boys dominated.

Europa Fiorentina 2 v Swans 2 (Chico Bony) - good result in a very even game

Prem Everton 1 v Swans 1 (Bony) - Bony is playing very well and is combining with Michu and Pozuelo brilliantly

Prem Swans 2 v Sunderland 1 (Michu Bony) - again we very excelllent except for a late (89th minute) goal against the run of play

Europa Swans 1 - Slovan B 0 (Davies) - second string side did the job as we clinched qualification for the knockout stages

Very good month with 4 wins and 2 draws in all comps in six games, but the schedule was very easy with three easy home games in the League. Picked up 10 of a possible 12 points in the League and we have moved up to sixth from eleventh. Bony has caught fire and has scored in the last four league games. Now looking forward to a busy December with 7 league games and 1 Europa on the docket.

February

Results

Prem - Stoke 1 v 1 Swansea (Bony) - Hard fought draw, biggest news being that Bony tore his calf and is now done for the season. Thank god I completed the Dybala deal!

Prem - Swansea 2 v 2 Chelsea (Michu x 2) - Missed a first min Pen (3rd in a row missed by De Guzman!) but matched them there after, including come from behind to lead. 92min equaliser from Hazard broke our hearts tho

Prem - Newcastle 0 v 3 Swansea (Michu x 3) - 2 even sides, separated by one brilliant player. Michu finally starting to play and 3 top class goals

FA Cup - Man U 1 v 0 Swansea - Squad was stretched at this point, Shelvey out for 6 weeks, and Utd were just too good for us overall.

Europa - Frankfurt 0 v 2 Swansea (Dybala, Dyer) - First goal for the club for Dybala and I rotated a bit and still came away with a great win

Prem - Swansea 1 v 1 Man Utd (Pozuelo) - Good point against a team who are 13pts clear at the top, we took the lead but gave away a poor goal.

Europa - Swansea 1 v 0 Frankfurt (Dybala) - Safely through, rested lots of players but brought Dybala of the bench and he looks to be finding his scoring touch

Overall a good month, would have liked more from the Stoke match, but balanced against good points against both Chelsea and Utd. Next month doesn't start any easier, with Arsenal then Liverpool our next 2 games. Europa tie against Spurs also due in March. Will get Shelvey back early March, but Bony out for the season and Lamah still out until mid April.

December:

Prem Swans 2 v Southampton 1 (Michu and Bony) - the boys are really rolling now. bony has scored in five games straight in the league

Prem ManU 1 v Swans 1 - Vazquez - great result. for once we were totally outchanced and scored against the run of play. possession was still 50/50 but the were all over me for long stretches. Tied the game up late as I sent two up front which I never do.

Prem Swans 4 v WestHam 2 (OG Amat Dyer Davies) reverted back to my 4231 with wingers with the return to fitness of Dyer and Lamah, and the need to give a break to Michu, Bony and Pozuelo who have been carrying the team

Europa Rapid Wien2 v Swans 3 (Dyer OG Lamah) good road win to clinch first in the group

Prem Palace 1 v Swans 2 (Dyer Pozuelo) up 2-0 by the 11th minute and coasted the rest of the way. threw away the shutout by a defensive lapse in the 88th when Rangel squared the ball on the top of the 18 to Chamakh who blew the ball passed a sleepy Vorm who had no shots as of yet.

Prem Swans 0 v Arsenal 0 - actually bossed the game in both possession and chances.

Prem West Brom 1 v Swans 2 (Davies, Amat) -great win as most of 1st string was resting due to fixture congestion and the upcoming game versus Chelsea. Barnstorming Bale-esque goal by Davies

Prem Swans 3 v Chelsea 2 (Bony Nekounam OG) - came back from two nil down and to top it off an own goal by John Terry. Life does not get any sweeter!

At the half way point and sitting in 2nd (6 points behind ManU who haves 13wins 6 draws and zero loses) due to a streak of 17 games without a lose in the League. Over that span have won 11 and tied 6. Some great results and the team is playing great possession soccer. Michu has been brilliant for me and is really starting to click with Bony.