Swansea City’s summer window has already clicked into gear, with the club already landing two new faces ahead of the coming campaign.
However, there’s clearly plenty of work still to be done over the coming weeks, with several areas of the squad still in need of strengthening before the opening day of the new season in August.
There are a number of key decisions facing the club that could well end up defining how their summer window pans out.
A McBurnie reunion
Let’s start with the most recent development.
Swansea are certainly keen to strengthen their attacking options this summer and are understood to be assessing a number of possible targets, with Oli McBurnie believed to be among them.
However, the early indications suggest a reunion is some way away from coming close to fruition. For one, there hasn’t yet been any sort of approach from the Swans at this stage.
McBurnie himself is believed to be open to a return to the UK, and a return to the Swans, provided the terms are right, would certainly be of interest.
But it’s Swansea’s ability to put together a suitable package that has already been cited as a possible key stumbling block, despite McBurnie’s obvious emotional connection to the club.
It could well be a deal that’s beyond Swansea’s grasp, but a new striker is something the club will look to get done over the coming weeks.
Luton Town’s Carlton Morris has been cited elsewhere as a possible target, but club sources have indicated those suggestions are wide of the mark for now.
Darling’s contract
It’s the saga that’s rumbled on for months, and we could soon get a resolution one way or the other.
The club presented the center-back with an improved offer last month, but he’s still assessing his options amid growing interest from elsewhere.
Newly promoted duo Wrexham and Birmingham City are known admirers, although there are likely to be others keeping tabs on the 25-year-old.
It’s understood the defender isn’t too far away from making up his mind on his next move, and a decision could well be confirmed some time next week.
Darling’s contract runs out at the end of June, and the Swans still retain some hope that he will commit his future to the club.
However, their optimism has started to wane over the last couple of weeks, instead giving way to the feeling that a decision one way or the other is going to have to be made soon so that all parties can act accordingly as soon as possible.
Strengthening the defence
A new center back is likely to be high on the list of priorities regardless of what happens with Darling.
Hannes Delcroix has gone back to parent club Burnley, while Cyrus Christie and Kyle Naughton have been released, meaning they are already short of options, even with Darling staying on board.
There’s arguably a case already for the club to go after more than one center-back, and that point will become all the more pertinent should Darling choose to move on.
There had been suggestions recently that the club may look to reignite interest in Wales international Joe Low, who was the subject of a failed pursuit in January.
However, while he’s still admired by certain figures within the club, it’s understood he’s no longer a serious target. Ricardo Santos is an early name to have been linked following his departure from Bolton Wanderers on a free transfer, but the extent of Swansea’s interest isn’t yet known.
Meanwhile, like the center-back situation, the departures of Kyle Naughton and Cyrus Christie have similarly blunted Alan Sheehan’s defensive options in the wide positions.
Josh Key and Josh Tymon have impressed under the Irishman, and one suspects they will be the first-choice options heading into the new season.
However, there’s very little in terms of options behind those two stars, and that will surely be seen as a problem.
The returning loanees
Sheehan is already set to welcome three new faces this summer thanks to the club’s early moves in the window, but there are also a few players set to return from loan spells away that will now need to be assessed.
Given the need for a new striker, one might think there could be some room for the returning Jerry Yates and Mykola Kuharevich.
However, the noises coming out of the club at the moment suggest they will both likely be moved on should the right offers come in.
Kuharevich would certainly be open to staying at Scottish side Hibernian, but at the moment there hasn’t yet been any concrete decision over his, or indeed Yates’, future.
Commenting on his future, Kuharevich said, “I would consider this opportunity to return to Hibs again if it happens, because I am fully adapted to the team. And, of course, there is a great excitement to feel the taste of European football together with the club and fans, from whom I have constantly experienced crazy support.
“But I have a current contract with Swansea, so I am happy to spend the next season there too. The plan now is to rest, and after returning to work and the preseason training camp, time will tell where I end up.”
There, there’s Andy Fisher, who’s set to return on the back of a loan spell with St. Johnstone.
Lawrence Vigouroux is almost nailed on to continue his role as the club’s undisputed number one, but with Jon McLaughlin’s release, Nathan Broome is currently the only backup option.
Should the club decide to move Fisher on, a new goalkeeper could well emerge as another key priority.
The O’Brien conundrum
Bringing Lewis O’Brien back to the Swans would clearly be a hugely popular move given his exploits here on loan during the second half of last season.
However, at the moment, a return doesn’t seem too likely.
The midfielder is on the radar of a number of Championship clubs right now, but Swansea are yet to make any sort of move to bring him back to SA1.
At the moment, the view appears to be that O’Brien is likely to be beyond Swansea’s budget this summer, while the capture of Melker Widell is seemingly seen as a way of filling in the gap left by his absence.
Besides, it’s a decision that’s likely to be out of their hands anyway, given O’Brien still has a year left on his contract at Nottingham Forest.
Spanish giants Valencia are also keen, but reports linking him with newly promoted Wrexham have been played down by sources.
Who to sell
The transfer window can be just as much about cashing in on players as it is about bringing new faces on board, and there’s a chance that some of Swansea’s brighter performers could well catch the eye.
Tymon and Key, as mentioned, have impressed under the current boss, but it’s Goncalo Franco that has really emerged as a valuable asset.
The Portuguese midfielder has adapted brilliantly to life in the Championship, and it’s understood that several other clubs were keeping a close eye on his progress towards the end of the last campaign. Sign up to our Swansea City newsletter here.
For what it’s worth, Swansea has no interest in selling the 24-year-old. But it’s not impossible that their resolve could be tested by a bid at some point, particularly in the context of their well-publicized financial challenges.
As mentioned, one suspects the club would be more willing to listen to offers for some of their returning loanees, while there are a couple of other players that haven’t quite hit the heights.
Florian Bianchini, for example, hasn’t managed to make his mark, having largely been restricted to a series of performances off the bench under the current boss. He could well be earmarked as a potential source of cash this summer, while reports elsewhere claim there have also been murmurings around Zan Vipotnik’s future.
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