Swansea City’s early moves in the transfer window have clearly helped to elevate the mood around SA1 heading into the summer.
The captures of Zeidane Inoussa and Bobby Wales, as well as the long-awaited arrival of Melker Widell, have left many wondering whether this new regime has learned the long overdue lessons that bubbled to the surface under their predecessors.
The transfer window has traditionally been a frustrating time to be a Swans fan, but with three new faces now on board, there’s a growing sense of optimism about what may lie ahead over the coming months.
However, there’s one pressing priority that arguably hasn’t been adequately addressed for the best part of two years.
Many would make the point that Swansea hasn’t had an out-and-out goalscorer since Joel Piroe completed his move to Leeds United towards the end of the 2023 summer window, and their attempts to plug the gap left by the Dutchman ever since have so far fallen short.
There is an important underlying point to remember in all this, of course.
Recruiting a number nine capable of scoring goals on a regular basis is traditionally the hardest proposition for any club at any level this time of year, and Swansea will likely be joined by most of the Championship in searching for the next Piroe this summer.
Much has been made of the data modeling brought to the table by Richard Montague, who has previously stressed the importance of finding players who have previously been undervalued or under the radar of others.
Jerry Yates had his moments but lacked the predatory instincts to take his tally deep into double figures in his first season. Meanwhile, Mykola Kuharevich, despite a brief clamor, clearly wasn’t deemed ready for the championship.
Both spent last season out on loan at Derby County and Hibernian, respectively, and it seems highly likely that the club will look to move both of them on this summer.
If there was any unease about letting the duo go this time last year, much of it dissipated on the back of the capture of Zan Vipotnik, who was snapped up from crisis club Bordeaux. Indeed, Swansea chiefs were privately confident the Slovenian was the man to take on the mantle of Piroe’s long-term replacement.
It’s not quite worked out like that, of course.
In his first season, the 23-year-old has managed just seven goals in 42 Championship appearances, and the fact there have already been whispers about his future at the club suggests the staunch level of support he’s previously enjoyed from those behind the scenes might now be starting to wane.
In his defense, making the step up to the Championship was never going to be easy, and there is perhaps an argument for allowing him a little more time to adapt to the rigors of this level.
There is an important underlying point to remember in all this, of course.
Recruiting a number nine capable of scoring goals on a regular basis is traditionally the hardest proposition for any club at any level this time of year, and Swansea will likely be joined by most of the Championship in searching for the next Piroe this summer.
Much has been made of the data modeling brought to the table by Richard Montague, who has previously stressed the importance of finding players who have previously been undervalued or under the radar of others.
Finding Swansea’s next goal-scoring hero could well push Montague’s expertise to the limit, but it’s worth remembering he does have previous success in this area.
While at Notts County, he helped identify a young, unknown striker from Gateshead named Macaulay Langstaff.
It turned out pretty well, with the striker netting an astonishing 41 goals in 47 appearances to help County get promoted back to League Two, where he would go on to score another 28 goals.
Translating that success to the Championship, however, could well be more of a challenge.
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