Last season was an interesting one for Swansea City who in some ways bumped back down to earth after the elation of their famous League Cup win under the management of Michael Laudrup. The fact though that a season which included European Football could be described as 'bumping back down to earth' demonstrates how far the club have come in such a short amount of time and the truth of the matter is that achieving a twelfth place finish was actually a fantastic achievement. Disagreement with the board clearly reached fever pitch just before Laudrup was sacked and European football clearly took its toll on the squad so to stay largely away from relegation should be classed a success.
Swansea fans will be hoping for another season of safety and this will be the first full campaign for manager Garry Monk. Some people may have been surprised by the appointment part way through last season of the former Swansea player but in truth it is one that could reap dividends for the club as they attempt to become a mainstay of the Premier League. Garry Monk has been present at Swansea throughout the tenures of Roberto Martinez, Brendan Rodgers and Michael Laudrup and as a result knows what the fans have come to expect from the style of football being played and there is no danger of that being sacrificed. Perhaps most importantly Monk will always have the fans behind him and that is important should the team be struggling at any point.
Despite the success Laudrup brought to the club there were murmurings of discontent when the team were in difficulty at times last season but I get the feeling that this would not be the case with the current manager.
So from a managerial point of view things look to be sound but what about the players? Important to Swansea last season was Wilfried Bony and despite rumours of interest from other clubs it is vital he stays because the Swans have never been potent in front of goal since they gained promotion, but his haul of sixteen league goals helped the team to notch up fifty-four in total, impressively putting them in the top half of the table when it comes to goalscoring.
A player to keep an eye on this season is new signing Bafatembi Gomes - during his time at Lyon he impressed and disappointed in equal measure and it will be interesting to see how he manages in the Premier League. If Gomes is successful he could be a good compliment to Bony but if not he could be a frustrating player to watch and the proverbial 'passenger' in the team.
Either way, free from the demands of European football and with some exciting players, not yet mentioning new signing Jefferson Montero, the club look well set to have a season which sees them remain relatively comfortable throughout. 2014-15 Prediction: 12th.
