Post by QPR Report on Aug 13, 2009 7:33:27 GMT
[Anyone know what happened to John Harbin? He left QPR a month ago...Reports said off to Swansea. But seen nothing on the Swansea site. - Also is there a QPR Replacement? Who? ]
Paulo Sousa playing patience for Swansea City
Aug 13 2009 by Blair Wood, Western Mail
THE world of football has always been a fickle one, but it’s not often a manager is pleading for patience after just one league game.
Yet, as he tries to prove there is life after Roberto Martinez, that’s exactly the position Swansea City’s new manager Paulo Sousa found himself in this week.
As he reflected on a comfortable 3-0 win over Brighton in the Carling Cup, Sousa unexpectedly opened up on the pressures he has faced since taking over the Liberty Stadium hot seat. The question was a simple: “Great performance Paulo?” The response was much more than any of the attending journalists expected.
Clearly needing to get things off his chest, the Portuguese legend put his cards firmly on the table. And, with the candid honesty that has typified his early reign, any doom and gloom merchants were given plenty of food for thought.
This was not a manager speaking out of desperation, though. In fact, instantly dismissing the suggestion he was in the slightest bit worried, the former Champions League winner oozed confidence when it came to the success he could bring Swansea over the coming years.
Instead, it was a manager imploring the fans he serves to embrace a new era at the club and give it the time he feels it needs to blossom.
A lot has changed at the Liberty this summer and, making specific reference to the departures of key men Jason Scotland and Jordi Gomez, Sousa wants time to produce his own blueprint for how to take the Swans forwards.
“It’s not easy for a new manager or the club when, in one moment, everything goes and everything becomes new,” he explained.
“We have a new manager, new staff and a new medical department and it’s not easy. We need to build these things slowly.
“We don’t have important players like Darren (Pratley), Joe (Allen) and Ferrie (Bodde) because of injury and we have lost two players who scored 40 goals last season.
“It’s not easy to be perfect straightaway when this happens. As the season goes on, things will get better and better.
“I have confidence in my players and in this club that we can achieve our targets. I had that when I came here, but we need time to build things.
“Of course everyone wants results and they are coming. But it’s not as quick as some people want or think it should be.”
As for whether his unprovoked plea meant he was worried he might not get the patience he needs, the Swans boss continued: “I’m not worried. I’m not the sort of person to get worried that easily.
“I am very confident in my abilities and the players I have. We have a lot of quality and, when everyone is in top form, I have no doubts we are a much, much better team.”
For all his confidence in the current crop of players, Sousa has never made any secret of the fact he wants to bring a few new faces to the Liberty. And, with former Real Madrid midfielder Jordi Lopez the only recruit to date, the Portuguese has duly been asked on a weekly basis when the summer signings would finally arrive.
It’s been a frustrating wait, with a number of deadlines being pushed back. Finding a new striker in particular seems to be turning into a proverbial search for the holy grail.
But, at least on the surface, Sousa appears to be a patient man. And, if a deal is not right for Swansea, it won’t happen.
Considering modern day football is now littered with managers whose solution to any problems is chucking vast amounts of money at the transfer market, it’s the sort of attitude that must have the ever-cautious Swans board purring. The club has been through its dark times and reckless spending is well and truly a thing of the past.
That being said, with Martinez and Scotland costing Wigan a combined £4m, there is money in the bank. And, when the new boss finds his man, he will be backed.
The fact the 38-year-old, who was a keen observer as plans for the new £1m Landore training ground were unveiled yesterday, is strongly against wholesale changes certainly counts in his favour as well. Sousa wants to shape his own squad, but it seems he has no intention of ripping out the heart of a team that brought his predecessor so much success.
“This is a team that is still building,” he said. “But I am not a manager who destroys the capital of the club.
“I am not going to bring in seven or eight players and forget everything that has been done in the past. I agreed that with the chairman when I came here.
“Of course we need new players, I have said that, but I care about the club and I care about the squad so we will not go crazy.
“It’s easy for a manager to spend £10m or £20m, but we can’t spend like that and I’m not like that. I care about the future of the club.
“Of course we are waiting for players to come and help us build better performances and results. But I believe, with the players I have here already, we can make another step forwards.”
If Sousa is looking for solutions from within the existing playing staff, then Tuesday’s victory over Brighton certainly had its plus points. As well as seeing his side book a place in the next round, a well-taken brace from Stephen Dobbie and an impressive all-round performance from Andrea Orlandi gave a timely boost to competition for places in the starting XI.
The former Juventus man wasn’t getting carried away, though. In the same way an opening defeat to Leicester wasn’t the end of the world, one cup win doesn’t mean everything is rosy.
Nevertheless, victory still offered some substance to go with his patience plea. And, if Sousa is to build a bright future for the Swans, the fact he wasn’t willing to settle for a 3-0 victory can only be a good thing.
“It was a good result, but I am not 100 per cent happy because we can be a lot better,” he said. “I am not euphoric about a 3-0 win, but I am not so down when we lose either.
“I cannot read after one defeat about problems in the team and then, after one win, I can’t read about everything being great.
“I was happy that we were making quicker and better decisions, though. We made better decisions in the final third and had more people arriving in the box.
“Certain players also gave me some difficult decisions for selection on Saturday. They need to be doing that every day, in training and games, so that was one of the positives against Brighton.”
www.walesonline.co.uk/footballnation/swansea-city-fc/2009/08/13/paulo-sousa-playing-patience-for-swansea-city-91466-24395453/
And Swansea Forward Planning (No comment!)
Swansea City chairman Huw Jenkins hails new £1m training facility
Aug 13 2009 by Blair Wood, Western Mail
SWANSEA CITY chairman Huw Jenkins has hailed the club’s new £1m Landore training ground as a huge step towards securing coveted full academy status.
After four years of hard work, the Swans finally unveiled plans for their new training complex yesterday. And, with a replica of the Liberty Stadium pitch, two training pitches, a full-size artificial pitch with floodlights and a multi-purpose pavilion in the plans, the move is set to benefit the club’s first and youth team set-ups as well as the wider community in Swansea.
For Jenkins and the Swans board, yesterday’s announcement represents a huge step forward for the club’s long-term future. And, as they look to produce more home-grown talents, he was confident it wouldn’t be long before Swansea was granted full academy status.
“This is a very significant day for the club,” Jenkins beamed. “This gives us the chance to bring more young players through and continue the good work we have done over the past few years.
“Ever since we got involved seven years ago, these training facilities were, along with the new stadium, a priority for the board. We wanted to invest in facilities that will still be there long after we have gone.
“This development will move us into a position where we can apply for full academy status. We have already spoken to the Football League about it and we want to tie everything up over the next few seasons.”
Jenkins also had good news for Swans fans regarding Tuesday’s meeting with Dutch maestro Ferrie Bodde, adding: “We had a very good meeting and, as things stand, Ferrie will not be leaving us this month. We never wanted him to go and that hasn’t changed.
“Ferrie is focusing on getting fit and playing for us again. He is well on his way back to fitness and could return within a month.”
www.walesonline.co.uk/footballnation/swansea-city-fc/2009/08/13/swansea-city-chairman-huw-jenkins-hails-new-1m-training-facility-91466-24395455/
Paulo Sousa playing patience for Swansea City
Aug 13 2009 by Blair Wood, Western Mail
THE world of football has always been a fickle one, but it’s not often a manager is pleading for patience after just one league game.
Yet, as he tries to prove there is life after Roberto Martinez, that’s exactly the position Swansea City’s new manager Paulo Sousa found himself in this week.
As he reflected on a comfortable 3-0 win over Brighton in the Carling Cup, Sousa unexpectedly opened up on the pressures he has faced since taking over the Liberty Stadium hot seat. The question was a simple: “Great performance Paulo?” The response was much more than any of the attending journalists expected.
Clearly needing to get things off his chest, the Portuguese legend put his cards firmly on the table. And, with the candid honesty that has typified his early reign, any doom and gloom merchants were given plenty of food for thought.
This was not a manager speaking out of desperation, though. In fact, instantly dismissing the suggestion he was in the slightest bit worried, the former Champions League winner oozed confidence when it came to the success he could bring Swansea over the coming years.
Instead, it was a manager imploring the fans he serves to embrace a new era at the club and give it the time he feels it needs to blossom.
A lot has changed at the Liberty this summer and, making specific reference to the departures of key men Jason Scotland and Jordi Gomez, Sousa wants time to produce his own blueprint for how to take the Swans forwards.
“It’s not easy for a new manager or the club when, in one moment, everything goes and everything becomes new,” he explained.
“We have a new manager, new staff and a new medical department and it’s not easy. We need to build these things slowly.
“We don’t have important players like Darren (Pratley), Joe (Allen) and Ferrie (Bodde) because of injury and we have lost two players who scored 40 goals last season.
“It’s not easy to be perfect straightaway when this happens. As the season goes on, things will get better and better.
“I have confidence in my players and in this club that we can achieve our targets. I had that when I came here, but we need time to build things.
“Of course everyone wants results and they are coming. But it’s not as quick as some people want or think it should be.”
As for whether his unprovoked plea meant he was worried he might not get the patience he needs, the Swans boss continued: “I’m not worried. I’m not the sort of person to get worried that easily.
“I am very confident in my abilities and the players I have. We have a lot of quality and, when everyone is in top form, I have no doubts we are a much, much better team.”
For all his confidence in the current crop of players, Sousa has never made any secret of the fact he wants to bring a few new faces to the Liberty. And, with former Real Madrid midfielder Jordi Lopez the only recruit to date, the Portuguese has duly been asked on a weekly basis when the summer signings would finally arrive.
It’s been a frustrating wait, with a number of deadlines being pushed back. Finding a new striker in particular seems to be turning into a proverbial search for the holy grail.
But, at least on the surface, Sousa appears to be a patient man. And, if a deal is not right for Swansea, it won’t happen.
Considering modern day football is now littered with managers whose solution to any problems is chucking vast amounts of money at the transfer market, it’s the sort of attitude that must have the ever-cautious Swans board purring. The club has been through its dark times and reckless spending is well and truly a thing of the past.
That being said, with Martinez and Scotland costing Wigan a combined £4m, there is money in the bank. And, when the new boss finds his man, he will be backed.
The fact the 38-year-old, who was a keen observer as plans for the new £1m Landore training ground were unveiled yesterday, is strongly against wholesale changes certainly counts in his favour as well. Sousa wants to shape his own squad, but it seems he has no intention of ripping out the heart of a team that brought his predecessor so much success.
“This is a team that is still building,” he said. “But I am not a manager who destroys the capital of the club.
“I am not going to bring in seven or eight players and forget everything that has been done in the past. I agreed that with the chairman when I came here.
“Of course we need new players, I have said that, but I care about the club and I care about the squad so we will not go crazy.
“It’s easy for a manager to spend £10m or £20m, but we can’t spend like that and I’m not like that. I care about the future of the club.
“Of course we are waiting for players to come and help us build better performances and results. But I believe, with the players I have here already, we can make another step forwards.”
If Sousa is looking for solutions from within the existing playing staff, then Tuesday’s victory over Brighton certainly had its plus points. As well as seeing his side book a place in the next round, a well-taken brace from Stephen Dobbie and an impressive all-round performance from Andrea Orlandi gave a timely boost to competition for places in the starting XI.
The former Juventus man wasn’t getting carried away, though. In the same way an opening defeat to Leicester wasn’t the end of the world, one cup win doesn’t mean everything is rosy.
Nevertheless, victory still offered some substance to go with his patience plea. And, if Sousa is to build a bright future for the Swans, the fact he wasn’t willing to settle for a 3-0 victory can only be a good thing.
“It was a good result, but I am not 100 per cent happy because we can be a lot better,” he said. “I am not euphoric about a 3-0 win, but I am not so down when we lose either.
“I cannot read after one defeat about problems in the team and then, after one win, I can’t read about everything being great.
“I was happy that we were making quicker and better decisions, though. We made better decisions in the final third and had more people arriving in the box.
“Certain players also gave me some difficult decisions for selection on Saturday. They need to be doing that every day, in training and games, so that was one of the positives against Brighton.”
www.walesonline.co.uk/footballnation/swansea-city-fc/2009/08/13/paulo-sousa-playing-patience-for-swansea-city-91466-24395453/
And Swansea Forward Planning (No comment!)
Swansea City chairman Huw Jenkins hails new £1m training facility
Aug 13 2009 by Blair Wood, Western Mail
SWANSEA CITY chairman Huw Jenkins has hailed the club’s new £1m Landore training ground as a huge step towards securing coveted full academy status.
After four years of hard work, the Swans finally unveiled plans for their new training complex yesterday. And, with a replica of the Liberty Stadium pitch, two training pitches, a full-size artificial pitch with floodlights and a multi-purpose pavilion in the plans, the move is set to benefit the club’s first and youth team set-ups as well as the wider community in Swansea.
For Jenkins and the Swans board, yesterday’s announcement represents a huge step forward for the club’s long-term future. And, as they look to produce more home-grown talents, he was confident it wouldn’t be long before Swansea was granted full academy status.
“This is a very significant day for the club,” Jenkins beamed. “This gives us the chance to bring more young players through and continue the good work we have done over the past few years.
“Ever since we got involved seven years ago, these training facilities were, along with the new stadium, a priority for the board. We wanted to invest in facilities that will still be there long after we have gone.
“This development will move us into a position where we can apply for full academy status. We have already spoken to the Football League about it and we want to tie everything up over the next few seasons.”
Jenkins also had good news for Swans fans regarding Tuesday’s meeting with Dutch maestro Ferrie Bodde, adding: “We had a very good meeting and, as things stand, Ferrie will not be leaving us this month. We never wanted him to go and that hasn’t changed.
“Ferrie is focusing on getting fit and playing for us again. He is well on his way back to fitness and could return within a month.”
www.walesonline.co.uk/footballnation/swansea-city-fc/2009/08/13/swansea-city-chairman-huw-jenkins-hails-new-1m-training-facility-91466-24395455/