Swansea City

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Luke Williams says Swansea City are “excited” by Zan Vipotnik as the striker prepares for a debut in English football at Middlesbrough on Saturday.

Slovenia international Vipotnik joined Swansea on a free last week following the collapse of his former club Bordeaux.

The 22-year-old is unlikely to start at the Riverside having only begun training with his new club this week.

But head coach Williams says the former Maribor frontman has made a positive impression.

“He's probably not at the same [fitness] level as the rest of the squad, which is understandable,” he said.

“We have to respect that he's going to take a bit of time to get up to speed, but we really like what we've seen from him and we're really excited about him.

“He's been in full training for a couple of days to get his fitness up, which has probably been a bit of a shock to the system. He will get there.”

As things stand, Vipotnik will compete with Liam Cullen for the number nine shirt at Swansea, though the club are still seeking attacking reinforcements.

If no other centre-forward arrives this month, it could be that Brazilian winger Ronald is deployed in a more central role when required.

Cullen, 25, is expected to lead the line as Swansea look to begin 2024-25 with away victory at the Riverside.

Williams says the Wales international’s “top mentality” means he is ready to fight Vipotnik for a place in his team.

“I think there's more to come from Liam Cullen - his personality means he's just never going to stop,” he added.

“He keeps pushing all the time and he's embraced Vipi (Vipotnik) since he's been here, which is what we expected. That's what we want - healthy competition as adults, not sulking.”

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A group of Swansea City fans are calling for a statue of Mel Nurse to be erected at the Swansea.com Stadium.

Nurse, 86, played more than 250 games for the Swans, but will be best remembered by most for his contribution off the pitch.

The former centre-half twice played a central role in saving Swansea from going out of business, first in 1985 and then in 2001.

The Championship club announced this week they would name a bar after Nurse this season, but members of the so-called Mel Nurse Statue Committee want to go a step further.

“Mel has done so much for our club and its fans. It’s time this was properly and permanently recognised,” they said.

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Luke Williams says the “landscape has changed” regarding Swansea City’s contract offer to Jamie Paterson, but has not completely ruled out the idea of the attacking midfielder returning in 2024-25.

Paterson was offered a new deal by Swansea at the end of last season but opted not to re-sign for the Championship club.

With two days to go until the new season begins, Paterson remains a free agent – and Swansea are looking for players.

Paterson, 32, scored 17 goals in 109 appearances after joining Swansea in August 2021 and was one of their most effective attacking players last season.

When asked about the former Bristol City player’s situation, Swansea head coach Williams said: “With Jamie, the landscape changed a bit because we didn’t have too much contact with him. We didn’t know what his plans were over the summer.

“The wheels are [now] in motion with several [potential] players. There’s a chance we sign all of them or none of them or somewhere in between, and that probably has an effect on what happens with Jamie Paterson.

“I’d say at the moment the door is not completely shut, but there are other things which are probably a priority at the moment and we will see what happens in all those scenarios.”

Williams said at the end of last season he wanted to keep Paterson as well as fellow experienced players Joe Allen and Kyle Naughton, who both signed new Swansea deals.

“For me to say we are holding a place [for Paterson] indefinitely in the squad and in terms of budget... a long period of time has elapsed since I made that statement,” Williams added.

“He is a fabulous guy, one of my favourite guys I have ever worked with, and he is a fantastic footballer. But there are a lot of things that are now bubbling away that would have a direct effect on whether that offer is still on the table.”

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Ruben Providence is training with Swansea City this week as the Championship club assess whether to offer the former France Under-21 winger a contract.

Providence, 23, featured as a second-half substitute in last weekend’s friendly win over Rio Ave.

Providence is a TSV Hartberg player, but has been allowed to spend time at Swansea and Championship new boys Oxford United this summer.

Swansea head coach Luke Williams is in the market for two wide players and has been impressed by Providence’s impact.

However, the Swans are also working on potential deals for a number of other wingers.

It remains to be seen, therefore, whether they will push ahead with a move for Providence.

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Former Swansea City player and director Mel Nurse is to be honoured by having a bar named after him at the Swansea.com stadium.

The refurbished Riverside Lounge within the stadium's East Stand will be named the Mel Nurse Bar for the 2024/25 season.

Former Wales centre-half Nurse, 86, made more than 250 appearances for the Swans and later played a key role as a club director, including saving the Swans from insolvency in 2002.

He led the consortium that acquired the the club from then-owner Tony Petty.

The move - supported by the Swansea Former Players’ Association and the Supporters’ Trust - pays homage to the old Mel Nurse Bar, which was situated by the North Bank at the club’s former Vetch Field home.

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Unless Swansea City add to their tally of summer signings this week, Luke Williams’ squad for the trip to Middlesbrough will almost pick itself.

While no definitive timescales have been given, it seems injuries suffered by the likes of Andy Fisher, Joe Allen and Josh Ginnelly will see them ruled out of the Championship’s opening weekend.

It is a decent bet that Williams’ first XI of 2024-25 will be something close to the one which started Saturday’s pre-season win over Rio Ave.

That means Lawrence Vigouroux will be in goal, with Josh Key, Ben Cabango, Harry Darling and Josh Tymon making up a back four, with Williams’ options in that department desperately thin.

With Allen doubtful, Matt Grimes, Jay Fulton and Goncalo Franco are likely to begin in midfield with Eom Ji-Sung and Liam Cullen likely to retain their places.

Azeem Abdulai may start again, too, though Ronald will push for a start if he is passed fit.

So what does that leave on the bench?

Teenager Evan Watts or Nathan Broome will be back-up keeper as things stand. Then come the likes of Kristian Pedersen and Nathan Tjoe-A-On – both of whom were sent out on loan last January – plus youngster Filip Lissah and veteran Kyle Naughton.

Ollie Cooper offers some experience, while new recruit Zan Vipotnik will hope for a Swansea debut having met his new team-mates this week.

With nine substitutes required in the Championship, under-21 players Liam Smith, Dan Watts and Josh Thomas are also in contention for a spell on first-team duty.

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Head coach Luke Williams insists he has a “healthy” Swansea City squad, despite being without some key players.

Williams says veteran midfielder Joe Allen is “on course” with his rehabilitation after a toe injury.

“He had a medium term length injury and is rehabilitating really well,” said Williams.

Like Allen, midfielder Josh Ginnelly and goalkeeper Andrew Fisher were not involved in the friendly win over Rio Ave last Saturday.

“From when I joined the club, I’ve not seen him [Ginnelly]  kick a ball in anger, but he’s continuing to progress well with the medical team,” added Williams.

“Andrew Fisher is a shame because he picked this up on the tour and nothing could be done about that.

“He’s kicked the ball in a strange way and he felt a pain. We now know it’s going to be more extensive than that.

“Overall, I think we have to say we are a healthy group and there aren’t so many injuries for us to be alarmed about."

Meanwhile Williams is positive about winger Ronald returning from a hamstring issue, possibly in time for Saturday’s Championship opener at Middlesbrough.

“Ronald is going to be very close, we are having to reign him in a little bit, he’s a machine, he wants to go, we have to make sure he comes back good and ready because he's a very important player for us," said Williams.

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Goals from Jay Fulton, Kyle Naughton and Matt Grimes gave Swansea City a convincing win over Portuguese side Rio Ave in their final pre-season friendly.

Midfielder Fulton gave the Swans a half-time lead, finishing from close range after a deflected cross from new signing Eom Ji-Sung.

Substitute Naughton took advantage of a goalmouth scramble to score in the six-yard box after 73 minutes, before Grimes sealed the win with a low, left footed drive set up by trialist Ruben Providence.

Providence a former France Under-19 international, came off the bench during the second half and is looking for a club having last played for Austrian side TSV Hartberg.

The Swans gave first home starts to South Korea international Eom, as well as goalkeeper Lawrence Vigoroux and midfielder Goncalo Franco.

Another new Swansea arrival, Slovenia forward Zan Vipotnik, was presented to the crowd at half-time after signing a four-year deal.

Swansea's EFL campaign begins at Middlesbrough next Saturday at 12:30 BST.

New signings Eom Ji-Sung, Goncalo Franco and Lawrence Vigouroux will make their first home appearances for Swansea City in Saturday's friendly against Rio Ave of Portugal (15:00 BST).

All three players are named in the starting XI.

Slovenia forward Zan Vipotnik, who signed on Thursday, will be presented to the crowd of around 5,000 at half-time.

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Swansea City Women have appointed Yzzy Taylor as assistant manager to Jamie Sherwood ahead of the 2024-25 season.

Taylor spent 11 years as player and then manager at Cardiff Met, stepping down at the end of the 2022-23 season.

She won six Adran Premier titles, three Welsh Cups and four Adran Trophies while in charge of the Archers.

Taylor said joining Swansea was “an opportunity that I couldn’t say no to".

The 30-year-old will continue her job within the Wales Women Under-19s’ coaching team alongside her new role with the Swans.

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Swansea City play the final pre-season game when Portuguese top-flight side Rio Ave visit the Swansea.com Stadium on Saturday (15:00 BST).

It has not been a hectic pre-season, with Swansea playing behind-closed-doors games against Swindon Town and Bristol Rovers before a training camp in Austria.

They lost 2-1 to German side FC Koln while in Austria before rounding off the trip with a 1-1 draw against North Macedonian club FK Vardar, with Luke Williams picking a more inexperienced side for the latter fixture.

Now comes the final dress rehearsal for the new Championship season, with head coach Williams thought likely to field something close to the line-up which will start at Middlesbrough on Saturday, 10 August.

The lack of options with Swansea’s squad means much of Williams’ team picks itself right now.

On Thursday striker Zan Vipotnik became the club’s fourth summer signing, though the Slovenia international will not join up with his new team-mates until next week.

Swansea's three other close-season recruits - Lawrence Vigouroux, Goncalo Franco and Eom Ji-Sung - should all make their first home appearances for the club this weekend.

The Swans have a number of fitness issues to contend with on the eve of the new season, with Andy Fisher, Kyle Naughton, Sam Parker, Joe Allen, Ronald, Aimar Govea, Mykola Kuharevich and Josh Ginnelly all absent from the open training session the club held earlier this week.

Rio Ave finished 11th in the 18-team Primeira Liga last season.