Swansea City - How far can we go?

Full article available at http://www.theswanseaway.co.uk/2013/07/swansea-city-how-far-can-we-go.html​

With the Swans soaring ever higher, can a club which operates responsibly ever hope to compete with the country's elite?

With Swansea City about to embark on their maiden Europa League campaign (previous forays into other formats of European competition excluded) I've been wondering just how far it's possible for a club like the Swans to go.

For years, Arsenal have been regarded as the pariahs of British football (in terms of how the game is played), and while there are numerous similarities between how the two teams play the game the more telling comparison is in evidence off the field. Famed for their fiscal prudence, Arsenal have developed a reputation for penny-pinching and, with cash reserves in excess of £100million, they are easily the most solvent club in the UK - if by solvent you apply the "pay your own way" criteria. It's when you remove that stipulation, however, that things become interesting, and perhaps a little worrying.

Arsenal built their reputation as a passing team at a time when mega-rich "Sugar Daddy's" were, with all due respect, a little less mega-rich, and since the arrival of Abramovich et al they've found the going a lot tougher. Their last trophy came in 2005 (an FA Cup) while their last league title came the year prior to that, and despite the solid footing the club have built for themselves their reluctance to spend in the transfer market does seem to finally be trying the patience of even their most loyal fans. Those that remain anyway - I've spoken to numerous Arsenal fans who've become disillusioned with how their club have evolved, but this is likely more to do with football in general and to single the Gunners out for that reason would be harsh. There's a prawn sandwich brigade at most clubs, and Arsenal are surely no worse than Manchester United or Chelsea in that regard.

How does this affect the Swans? Not directly, granted, however it got me thinking about whether, with the Swans emphasis also on financial prudence, we could ever hope to break into British football's elite - if (and I know that's a big if) results on the field did ever propel us into the upper reaches of the Premiership. I'm not really on about challenging for the title here; given our recent history that would be rather preposterous, it's more about whether a club that prides itself on (and gears towards) running at a profit will ever be able to compete with clubs who have owners with deep pockets.

A look to the continent would seem to suggest so; German football has been held up as an example to follow, and seems set to do well from incoming Financial Fair Play rules, but how does it work over there? Their regulations forbid any owner from holding more than a 49% stake in the club, so in the most successful example of this model (Bayern Munich) they have numerous partners who own smaller stakes in the club, and make a massive amount of money from their merchandising deals (such as stadium naming rights, kit sponsorship etc). An interesting article on finance in German football points out that the sponsorship deals Bayern have in place make up over half of their revenue stream; while that may be viable for a club like Arsenal it's unlikely the Swans will ever be able to swing that kind of deal, given their recent arrival at the big boy's table.

All of this is redundant, however, if you fail to make signings which will, at the very least, maintain the level of the squad. For Arsenal, the succession of top players who've walked out the door must be worrying, as without silverware soon they are in danger of falling away from European's elite, however last season their performances were often a lot better than they were given credit for. A particularly solid defensive footing will have pleased Wenger no end, but their profligacy in the transfer market seems set to bite them in their derrieres once again, with no real signings coming in and transfer deadline day starting to appear on the horizon.

Swansea, on the other hand, have come out all guns blazing. They'd clearly been working on some deals since January, and Jose Canas was the first to put pen to paper on a contract with the Swans, before Alejandro Pozuelo, Jonjo Shelvey, Jordi Amat, Wilfried Bony and Jernade Meade all joined the procession of talented footballers making their way to South Wales. Youngsters Alex Gogic and Gregor Zabret also penned deals with the club, although they (along with Meade) are likely to spend the majority of the season with the development squad.

The acquisition of Bony, though, is the one which should strike a chord with Arsenal fans. The Swans spending £12million is surely the equivalent of Arsenal spending around £30million, given the relative standings of the club (and Arsenal's cash reserves) in terms of the gamble you're taking that the move will come off. It really is a massive, massive figure for a club who are only a decade departed from the lowest professional league in the country, but more importantly a club who always, always put fiscal security above anything else.

I still firmly believe if we spent £12million it was there to spend, and I'm not worried that we've spent around £20million in the transfer market. Given Danny Graham's sale to Sunderland (we did well there, didn't we?), and the leftover kitty from Joe Allen, Scott Sinclair & Brendan Rodgers' transfers there must have been a sizable transfer fund available, but the important thing is the ambition it shows. Laudrup has said numerous times that standing still isn't acceptable, and that he wants to move forward as a club - the signings we've made so far indicate we're going to do just that. The question is...how far we can go?

 

Football is a simple game. you dont need a ton of money to win games you need a good team of eleven talented players backed by a clever manager and depth in the squad. We have all that. The difference between United and us or any other of the top teams in the league is marginal - fractions of fractions along any dimension you wish to measure. It's really that close. Over the course of a season it is the capability to maintain consistent high performance, the tolerance of injuries, the fitness and emotional state and desire of the players that convert these fractions into points and aggregate points into league position.

Right now, we are just as capable as United to win this league. We are just as capable as any other team of winning any game against any of the the so called top-teams on any given Saturday. Likewise, we can lose against any of the lesser teams in the league also .... just like United. It's all that close.

Can this team produce consistently at the highest level - to be determined. But if they can, anything is possible, We astonished the country 30 years ago in our first season in the top league; only injuries and lack of depth caused us to falter at the end. If this team believes then anything is possible.

 

I can see us challenging for the 6-10th spots this season if we don't suffer any major injuries

 

I'm going to put a bet on us ending top 8 and last 16 of Europa league. No idea what odds I'll get

 

That's a very good read Scott, and the comparison with Arsenal is one that I have reflected on many times, though I have also looked at the Everton model regarding the spending limits to, both teams are run well, but at the end of the day, on the field of play, anything is possible, just look at Greece one year winning the Euro's?

Some times it just comes down to that bit of luck, but you can make your own luck, if you are consistantly enough knocking at the door long enough, I do think that we have all the ingredients to one day do this, after all, haven't you ever heard of 'David & Goliath'?

We are a team that is in pursuit of excellence on the field of play, and our technical game will in my view bring home, the ultimate goal that our game well deserves, keep the faith, that is all I can say!...............

 

We are capable of matching any team on the park but financially I'm afraid thats a step too far ,one of the troubles with the PL (amongst many others) is the financial gulf between the top 5/6 clubs and the rest which make it a tad unfair , just look at what we've spent just with the hope of keeping up with the other mid table teams .To think that the best we can hope for at this level is just to maintain PL status which is a bit depressing when we've previously been having promotion goals to aim for .Cup games are a different matter but again at what cost to maintaining our position within this league?
Thats not to say we will never break into the top 6 as other clubs have done so but look what it cost them ,much bigger clubs but no longer playing PL football such as Portsmouth. Ipswich, Coventry and so on .
But aside to my doom and gloom response what a time we're having and onwards and upwards

 

I'll settle for just staying in the PL even though we've no chance of winning it. The high profile we get just for being there is worth it - fabulous reports in the worldwide media and consistent TV appearances etc.

We are capable of beating any PL team, including the top 6, on our day and I'll be satisfied with staying in the league and picking up the odd big name scalp in the process. Then there are the cup competitions and I have a feeling that our first trophy is not going to be our last.

So long as we continue to play with our unique style, we will always get respect and coverage and, who knows, one day we might just gatecrash the top 4 and get to play in the Champions League. Of course that will be a hell of an ask but, if circumstance and luck falls our way, it could happen.

 

Hi Scott. Good read that n were looking good again.
As long as we keep going on n off the field the way we have then I don't see why we can't achieve great things and future swans fans will look back at this golden age with immense pride.
I'm spending the summer in France and all along the north n down the west coast the swans are known n respected for their play by the numerous French fans I've spoken to.
Dare to dream!

 

top of the league at least once this season...finishing in 6th or 7th...

 

Football is a simple game. you dont need a ton of money to win games you need a good team of eleven talented players backed by a clever manager and depth in the squad.

This is very true all you need is about what money we have already and clever managers who we have had since the martinez era, we have got better bit by bit with all our managers and we have amassed enough money in the last 3 seasons that laudrup can now spend a few bob on quality players. we will never pay silly money like the liverpools and man cities of this world but we can now match them player for player. just because they pay huge sums for the likes of VP or rooney and its looking like bale does not mean they are any better than bony or michu,s of this world. football transfers have gone crazy and i never want to see us go down that road of paying outrageous sums for players just because they are bigged up in the press. they score the same amount of goals as any other good team at the end of the day....

 

One thing before too much crowing: Swansea's rise was due in great part to going into administration at a time when points were not deducted - their debts were cleared and their creditors, often small businesses, were left out of pocket -the administration made them a more attractive take-over option - compare this with some clubs who have done everything to avoid administration and have been unable to move on because of their tight housekeeping and their status that made them an unattractive investment option

 

Fair comment but you can only play what's in front of you. The rules of the time demanded certain action and we complied accordingly. Things are now much tighter which is (was) our good luck. We took full advantage of the then circumstances, learnt the lessons and fully deserve the success we are enjoying now.

If nothing else, our story is an inspiration to the fans of other clubs which have fallen on hard times. We have also become a role model in how to run a club successfully in an era when greed and obscene player's demands are driving a number of teams into oblivion. A quick look around the net will confirm the admiration and esteem with which we are regarded by most (unbiased) football fans.

 

Look at coventry for example just days before the season starts, They were a steady club in the top flight not long ago and now find they have no ground of their own and must play at someone elses ground, they have a minus 15pts start that could eventually be minus 30 pts if the football league decides that it warrants such a deduction. It's a bloody shame to see a club like coventry in such a mess through bad management.....I hope they survive and come through the other end for their fans sake...

 

Agh! I see, your one of those Cardiff fans who thinks he knows what he's talking about but knows absolutely 'F' all aren't you? Firstly, we did not go into administration. We went into a CVA which is not administration as no administrator was ever appointed. The main creditor was Mel Nurse who was a director of the club at the time, he literally lost tens of thousands of pounds in one fell swoop and the local businesses you mention have been repayed ten fold by sticking with the club in their hour of need. Secondly we most certainly weren't an attractive proposition for anyone to 'take us over' as we weren't taken over! The people who run the club when we went into CVA still run the club now, always remembering of course that the Final day game versus Hull came 15 months after we went into CVA so it certainly wasn't the 'wipe the slate clean' scenario you imply as the restrictions placed upon us were more severe than a club entering and coming out of admin! And please, spare me the droll about clubs struggling to avoid admin, administration has NEVER been an option for you guys. It's always been S*** OR BUST PAL!

 

Am I alone in wondering if Scott ever bothers reading our comments/other peoples threads?


Cheers Scott anyhow

 

I'm going to have to step in here Fernando Ferrari is literally battering RobM through the ****ing ropes and into the front row.

RobM consider yourself owned.

 

The newbies have some bite

 

Just here too help guys! Only just found this site and I like it! Think I'll stick around if thats ok?

 

As they say in the Liberty "mi casa es tu casa"

 

I'll say you'll finish anywhere from 5th to 8th and you'll go out in the EL group stage, which is a good thing for you because it's a stupid cup.