The international break has been an eventful and, some would argue, a challenging one for Swansea City.
Amid the positivity of seeing veteran midfielder Joe Allen make a highly-anticipated return to the Wales set-up, events on the other side of the world will be playing on the mind of Luke Williams ahead of this weekend’s trip to Blackburn Rovers.
The sight of Eom Jisung on crutches following South Korea’s win over Jordan has sparked understandable concern for Williams, and indeed supporters.
After a shaky start, Eom has arguably started to show signs of getting to grips with Championship football, and has already cemented himself as a firm cult favourite with fans.
Williams, who had previously picked holes in Eom’s performances, has also been pleased by the 22-year-old’s progress in recent weeks.
However, it’s clear he will likely have to find an alternative for the foreseeable future, particularly if details around the extent of Eom’s condition in the Korean press are to be taken at face value.
An official from the player’s camp told Korean outlet Interfootball: “According to Eom Jisung’s MRI test results, he suffered an injury to the medial collateral ligament of the tibia. It will likely take about 4 weeks for him to return to team training. He will be out for regular play for 4 to 6 weeks, which is longer than that.”
Eom has already returned to Fairwood, and will be assessed further by the club’s medical staff as they bid to establish the severity of the injury for themselves.
It certainly seems likely Williams will have an update for supporters when he faces the press later this week.
As for a solution, the simple option might well be to given Florian Bianchini the chance to slot in out wide, although he’s arguably yet to really get up to speed with the cut and thrust of Championship football.
You’d be hard pressed to find a Swans fan who thinks the experiment of placing Azeem Abdulai out wide has been any sort of success, either.
The summer window closed with Williams wanting to sign at least one more wide player, and under the current circumstances, his demands have been vindicated.
He didn’t get his wish on deadline day, but there’s still a chance he might yet strengthen his options over the coming days.
Adam Reach, along with former Swans loanee Cyrus Christie, have both been training with the Swans over the recent international break as part of their respective bids to find new clubs after becoming free agents this summer.
Both players are understood to still be with the club, although there’s not yet been any suggestion of a contract being on the table for either player at this stage.
Whether Eom’s injury will have shifted the thinking there remains to be seen. It’s certainly fair to assume that the gaze on the pair is likely to intensify over the next few days.
But as things stand, Williams is likely going to have to work with what he’s got.
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