Toon record offers hope for travelling Swans
SWANSEA City and Carlos Carvalhal have good records at St James’ Park, both parties could certainly do with them being extended on Tyneside today.
It’s 16 games and counting for the Welsh club’s Premier League survival hopes. They start the weekend bottom of the table, four points from safety and a further two behind their 13th placed hosts.
Allowing either margin to grow ahead of home games against Liverpool and Arsenal is not something the Swans and their Portuguese manager can really afford.
But trips to take on Newcastle have not held too many fears for Swansea or their new boss.
Swansea have suffered just one defeat at the home of the Magpies in the top-flight, with an overall record of three wins, one draw and one defeat from their five visits.
Carvalhal has tasted only victory, completing a league double over Rafael Benitez’s men in the Championship with Sheffield Wednesday on top of a League Cup victory at the home of the Toon during the previous campaign.
Despite the lack of transfer business during a crucial months in Swansea’s season, the former Owls boss was on bullish form as he looked ahead to a key fixture.
But he made clear he has no magic formula for success against the Magpies and he wants his players to embrace the challenge, rejecting suggestions that St James’ Park will make for an intimidating environment with over 50,000 fans packed in.
“My record against Newcastle does not mean we have an advantage for this game. It does not make us favourites,” he said.
“But to win a game like this you have to be organised, first of all, and your attitude and commitment must be strong.
“At the same time we must be confident in our ability to play football. When we have the ball we must play our game, play our football. That is something we must do if we want to bring points home from Newcastle.
“It is a nice environment, it is one I like and I enjoyed a lot having the opportunity to take a team there two times.
“I don’t think it is intimidating, it is a good ground, a nice environment and we must look at this game and this situation as an opportunity for us.
“We must not see it as a threat, it is an opportunity for the players to show their abilities, their quality. So we must look at these games like that.
“We must not see it as a threat or something negative.
It is the opposite. It is positive, it is football, a chance for us to try and play football, to enjoy and fight for the three points.”
Carvalhal will not have any reinforcements available against Newcastle.
While he has been good-natured in his handling of questions over transfers and tried to strike a light-hearted tone with his analogies regarding fishing for players, he will be acutely aware that business will need to be done sooner rather than later as games and time tick down.
But he knows it is an issue he cannot afford to distract him as he looks to build on some of the positive signs seen in the win over Watford and the secondhalf display against Tottenham.
They face a Newcastle side who have not found results easy to come by in their own back yard.
Benitez’s side have scored just two goals at St James’ Park in the Premier League since the start of November, losing five and drawing one of their last six games there.
Carvalhal and his players will look to feed off any unease among the home support, but he has made clear he expects to see his side display the boldness and character seen at Tottenham if they are to take advantage of such a scenario playing out. “It can happen in this kind of environment with a big passion, it can happen if the team is not in a good way,” he said. “Sometimes the fans can stay a little nervous – this is normal in strong crowds like Newcastle. “But for this to happen you must play with personality, stay with the ball, you must be with good character to do that, so let’s see if we can do that. “Of course these games have extra significance because you must take points off teams that are near you. “This is not a decisive game but it is an important game like all the games will be important by the end of the season.
“We must progress and be competitive to get points.
“If we can be more and more competitive and don’t look too much at the table and the points because if you look at the things you do and progress who knows how many you can win.
“To achieve that we must play better and better and jump to another level.”
“In general I am happy with the players especially the commitment, soul and heart they are putting out on the pitch because this is the most important in football.
“If you give everything on the pitch and if you can do more than that it will make me happy.
“I believe that if we play at 100% and the commitment is strong we can achieve points and, maybe not win all the games, we can beat some opponents in this competition.”
Achieving three points this afternoon would make it two wins from three under Carvalhal and may see supporters begin to have reason to share in the manager’s irrepressible positivity.