Defensive dilemma has many causes including fatigue
SWANSEA City’s defence has been one of their greatest strengths this season but over recent games it’s endured a big wobble.
The Swans are still statistically the joint-third best defensive outfit in the Championship but their record has taken a bit of a battering of late with eight goals conceded in their past three games.
More than a third of the goals conceded by Swansea in all competitions this season have come in the matches against Norwich, West Brom and Derby.
The big question is whether this flood of goals is a blip or a sign of things to come.
Obviously, without the assistance of a crystal ball, we’ll have to wait and see if this proves to be a short or long-term issue, but there are a few things which have definitely changed over recent weeks to contribute to Swansea’s more porous rearguard.
It’s worth noting that all of their recent opponents are in the top six and have some of the most talented attacking players in the division.
Conceding eight goals in three games is a poor record against anybody but it’s more understandable when it’s against three genuine promotion contenders.
Five at the back has been a constant debating point for Swansea fans over recent years and after a poor run of results the old discussion has once again returned.
Since moving to the Liberty in the summer, manager Graham Potter has regularly altered personnel and approach according to each matchday’s opponent.
Over the first four months of the campaign he’s played 4-3-3, 4-5-1 and 4-4-2 to name but a few. He’s also occasionally played with five at the back, usually against more talented sides including the past few games.
The thinking is obvious, by playing an extra centre-back the aim is to further solidify Swansea’s strong defence. Perhaps the pain of conceding four against Norwich a fortnight ago stung Potter and made him feel change was necessary.
But against West Brom and Derby the five at the back failed to give Swansea the defensive steel they craved and also stifled their attacking play.
Despite having Cameron Carter-vickers, Joe Rodon and Mike van der Hoorn on the pitch at the same time Swansea looked unusually open and exposed at the back, especially against Derby.
Swansea have failed to keep a clean sheet every time they’ve played with a back five this season. Considering the main purpose of the additional defender is to keep it tight at the back, it suggests the formation isn’t working.
But there’s another problem, some of these players look tired.
In the second half against West Brom and throughout Saturday’s game against Derby there were a lot of players on the pitch who looked both mentally and physically fatigued.
Eight of the starting 11 against Derby were 23 or younger and most of them are not used to playing this much competitive, first-team football.
The hectic season seemed to be catching up with a few of them, including Connor Roberts who has been key to Swansea’s defence and attack this season.
Having already played 2,268 minutes for club and country, featuring in all of Swansea and Wales’s games this season, it looked like the batteries required a re-charge in recent games.
Tiredness doesn’t just affect the legs, it affects the mind too.
Swansea’s pass success rate against Derby was just 75 per cent, very low for the Swans. Sloppy passes aren’t the only mistakes creeping into their game.
Swansea conceded just five goals in their first 11 games. They were fresh, alert and made very few errors. In the past three games we’ve seen goals conceded through poor positioning, loose marking and careless passes in dangerous areas as well as an own goal.
Swansea’s recent defensive troubles aren’t down to any one factor but there are numerous issues contributing to the general lack of sharpness at the back.
Some of these issues aren’t easy to fix. The thin squad makes it difficult to give players the rest they need and could also limits Potter’s ability to change the formation.
Swansea shouldn’t panic, they have easier games coming up which should put the defence under less pressure than it’s experienced in recent weeks.
But with Swansea entering the busiest period of the season it’s an inconvenient time to be dealing with defensive dilemmas.