Swansea City

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Former Swansea City boss Michael Duff is being linked with the vacant manager's job at Huddersfield Town.

Duff has been out of work since being sacked by Swansea in early December after less than six months in charge of the Welsh club.

But he could be heading back into the Championship with Huddersfield, who are just two points above the relegation places after Saturday's defeat at Southampton.

The Terriers sacked Darren Moore on 29 January.

Duff has been touted as a leading contender to take over ever since Moore departed, with one report in today's football gossip column suggesting his willingness to relocate to Yorkshire will be key to whether he gets the job.

Duff is based in Cheltenham, having previously played for and managed the Robins.

Huddersfield are five points below Swansea in the Championship table after Luke Williams' side won at Hull City on Saturday.

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Swansea City are keeping fingers crossed over Kyle Naughton amid fears the veteran defender has joined their lengthy injury list.

Naughton, 35, was forced off late on as Swansea claimed a first win in five Championship games at Hull City.

Naughton has started back-to-back league games – something he last did in December 2022 – as a result of injuries to fellow right-backs Josh Key and Harrison Ashby.

Harry Darling, Azeem Abdulai and Sam Parker would also be options to play on the right side of defence, but they are also on the sidelines.

That meant Naughton was replaced by on-loan Chelsea centre-back Bashir Humphreys at Hull.

With Leeds United to come at the Swansea.com Stadium on Tuesday, head coach Luke Williams is hoping 35-year-old Naughton is not seriously injured.

“I think he has more cramp than anything else,” Williams said.

“We are hoping – we will have to wait for it to settle down of course before we know for sure.

“But what a player. He is so gifted. He makes football look simple at times. [At Hull there was a] tough pitch, aggressive opposition, but he is so calm, so much quality, he sees things that other players wouldn’t be able to see.”

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Luke Williams paid tribute to his forward players after Liam Cullen’s goal gave Swansea City a welcome victory at Hull City.

Cullen’s early strike proved decisive as Swansea produced their best display under Williams to secure one of their most notable wins of a difficult season.

It was a first Championship triumph for Williams at the fifth time of asking, and stretched the gap between Swansea and the relegation zone to seven points.

Williams, who handed Cullen a rare start as a central striker ahead of Jerry Yates, said: “Liam is a finisher. That’s his main duty.

“He does the non-negotiable stuff – the running, the pressing and the recoveries. But ultimately he has to finish the actions and he did it.

“Culls has been playing out of the position. He deserved an opportunity to play as a central striker.

“I am really happy with Jerry Yates as well. I have been pleased with him and I am really excited about what he can do for us.

“And I know we have Myko (Kukharevych) as well. Trying to find an opportunity to get him on the pitch is challenging, but he is doing everything in training brilliantly. Honestly I am so pleased with these guys up front.”

Swansea’s first clean sheet under Williams meant they held on for only a second away win since late October.

January signings Ronald and Przemyslaw Placheta started either side of Cullen, and Williams felt the contribution of the two wide players was key to what was an encouraging display.

“They have changed the feel of the squad entirely,” he added.

“They have the pace, the directness, and they are tough as well.

“It’s not like they are lightweight and they don’t want to challenge or run back.”

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Swansea City head to Hull City on Saturday having won only one away league game since October.

The Swans are yet to triumph in four Championship fixtures under Luke Williams and have registered just two wins in their last 10 league games.

Sixth-placed Hull, by contrast, have won their last two matches – although Liam Rosenior’s team did lose four of their five league games before that.

Swansea have shown some encouraging signs since Williams took charge, most notably against Plymouth last time out, and the former Notts County boss says there is no lack of confidence within his squad.

“We believe in ourselves and we are going there expecting a tough game but looking to win and be competitive,” he said.

“Hull are very good. The manager has done a brilliant job and did a great job helping Wayne Rooney at Derby in a very challenging time.

“But we have to go there believing in ourselves. The players have the belief that we can win. We are not going there beaten before we travel, I can tell you that.”

Morgan Whittaker’s goal saw Plymouth register a first away win of the season at Swansea last weekend.

Argyle’s 1-0 success made it four straight defeats for Swansea in all competitions.

Nevertheless, Williams took heart from the Swans’ performance against Plymouth given that they carved out a host of chances.

“We need to create the actions we had in the last game and convert those,” he added.

“We have to concentrate and focus all the time because we have given up goals we did not need to.

“The more we work on the training pitch the more chance we have of making those things a reality.”

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Luke Williams says new Swansea City recruit Ronald is mixing English lessons with training sessions as he bids to settle in at the Championship club.

Brazilian winger Ronald arrived from Portuguese football during the transfer window.

So limited is the 22-year-old’s English, apparently, that even saying hello was a bit of a struggle when he arrived at Swansea’s training ground to complete his move to Wales.

But that did not stop Ronald producing an eye-catching display on his full debut in last weekend’s narrow defeat by Plymouth Argyle.

And head coach Williams says Ronald is settling in well, with communication aided by a member of Swansea’s scouting team who can speak Portuguese.

“Ronald is doing very well,” Williams said. “We have a translator on the training pitch and in the meetings sitting with Ronald. I am very happy he understands what we are asking of him.

“He is mixing with the players really well. I don’t think anyone understands a word they are saying but he wants to be involved in everything. He wants to be there with the guys.

“He is having English lessons twice a week and bit by bit it’s going to become easier for him.”

Williams felt Ronald “really stood out” against Plymouth.

He looks certain to be in Swansea’s starting side once more at Hull City this weekend, while fellow new recruits Przemyslaw Placheta and Charles Sagoe Jr are also available to start according to Williams.

“They came in without too much training but those guys are ready,” he added.

“The new guys have been encouraging, seeing their level improve.

“I think Ronald really stood out, I think that’s fair to say, and made some really exciting actions and created big openings for us.

“There were encouraging signs from all of them last weekend.”

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Luke Williams says there is “a realistic chance” teenager Sam Parker will not play again this season as Swansea City continue to be troubled by injury issues.

Parker, who can play at right-back or further up the right flank, made his first-team breakthrough earlier this season.

One of the 17-year-old’s three first-team appearances came in Williams’ first league game as Swansea boss, the 2-2 draw at Birmingham last month.

But it now appears Parker’s season could be over because of a significant hamstring injury.

“Sam Parker is going to be a longer-term one,” Williams said.

“He’s got a lot of things he needs to tick off but he’s going to be a while.”

Parker is one of numerous right-sided defensive options who remain unavailable to Williams as he prepares for Saturday’s trip to Hull City.

Josh Key (muscle), Harrison Ashby (hamstring) and Azeem Abdulai (hamstring) all remain some way off a return, while Harry Darling misses out even though he took part in training on Friday.

“It’s all on track in terms of what we expected for Josh but he’s not training at the minute,” Williams said.

“Harrison is still not right so there’s work to do on that one.

“Harry was on the grass today so that’s really encouraging, but we need to see how he reacts because that was his first day kicking the ball.

“Azeem is in the gym and recovering well.”

Midfielder Liam Walsh and forward Jamal Lowe are also working in the gym as they battle injury issues.

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Ethan Latham, BBC Sport Wales

A derby-day win sticks out in the memory of any football fan. There's something about the day that means more; the excitement, the passion and ultimately the bragging rights.

However, this time around the ship was far from stable at Swansea.

Cardiff had already beaten the Swans earlier in the season - the first south Wales derby to take place in the Premier League - with former Swansea defender Steven Caulker's towering header sealing victory.

After six defeats in eight Premier League games, Swansea sacked manager Michael Laudrup, only four days out from the return derby game.

Club captain Garry Monk was named as Laudrup's successor. His first task as a manager was the little matter of a south Wales derby.

Three points separated the sides before kick-off and it was Swansea who started brightly as Wilfred Bony made Cardiff goalkeeper David Marshall react well with his feet.

Cardiff striker Kenwyne Jones flashed a header just wide, in arguably the best chance of the first half.

Into the second half and Wayne Routledge, who had a loan spell at Cardiff in 2008-09, raced into the box to curl the ball low into the bottom corner.

The Swans then scored two goals in six minutes. Winger Nathan Dyer ghosted past his marker to net the second, before Bony powered home Pablo Hernandez's delivery to earn Swansea all three points.

Life at Swansea was suddenly an awful lot better, victory for Monk in his first game in charge was secured and the bragging rights were heading back to Swansea.

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Kyle Naughton had played just 164 minutes of league football this season before last weekend.

Swansea City’s injury issues saw the 35-year-old defender start against Plymouth Argyle and he went on to complete a Championship game for the first time in a year.

Plymouth saw Naughton begin a league fixture for only the third time this season, but the likelihood is that start number four will come at Hull City this weekend.

Naughton last started back-to-back league games in December 2022.

He is in line to wipe out that statistic at the MKM Stadium on Saturday with Swansea’s injury problems continuing.

Josh Key has not played since 22 December because of a muscle injury, while Harrison Ashby is in the midst of a second spell on the sidelines because of his own muscular problem.

Harry Darling (quad) and Azaam Abdulai (hamstring) would be contenders to fill in on the right side of defence, but both are injured, as is teenager Sam Parker.

The only realistic alternative to Naughton looks like centre-back Bashir Humphreys, but he was left on the bench last weekend after a run of patchy form.

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Former midfielder Owain Tudur Jones says concern over Swansea City’s Championship status is inevitable given the club’s poor form.

Swansea are five points clear of the relegation zone having won only once in their last seven league games.

They go to sixth-placed Hull City on Saturday before further testing fixtures against Leeds United, Ipswich Town and Sunderland.

Ex-Swan Andy Robinson said last weekend that his old club were “falling towards a relegation battle”.

Fellow BBC Sport Wales pundit Jones says head coach Luke Williams must find a way to win having taken one point from his first four league games in charge.

Speaking on this week’s Y Coridor Ansicrwydd, Jones said: “We have to be concerned. You’d be lying if you said they’re going to be fine given their current run of form.

“Luke Williams needs that first win in the league, for his own confidence not just for the players’ [confidence].

“It’s not great. They’ve just lost at home to Plymouth, who hadn’t won a game away all season.

“They need to get out of it by hook or by crook. It would be a shocker if Swansea went down.”

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Gareth Vincent, BBC Sport Wales

Life as a Championship head coach is unlikely to get any easier any time soon for Luke Williams.

Swansea City have taken one point from four league games since Williams left Notts County to take over at the Welsh club on 5 January.

Swansea might have won when they drew at Birmingham in Williams’ first Championship fixture, although he conceded the Blues were worth their late equaliser.

Then came defeats to Southampton and Leicester – in which Swansea showed some good signs but were well beaten – before last weekend’s frustrating home loss to Plymouth, when Williams’ team paid the price for missing a raft of golden chances.

Now comes a testing visit to sixth-placed Hull City, before back-to-back home games against third-placed Leeds United and Ipswich Town, who are fourth.

After that demanding week, Swansea make the long trip to take on Sunderland, another side who are in play-off contention.

The fixtures have not fallen kindly for Williams. As he attempts to establish himself at Swansea, he will be only too aware that his new team are a mere five points clear of the bottom three having won only once in their last seven league games.

But it is not all bad news.

After Sunderland, Swansea will have 12 Championship games to play. Nine of those games are against teams who are currently in the bottom half of the table.

Of those in the top half, Norwich are the best placed in ninth.

It could be, therefore, that the business end of the season gives Williams the best chance to get his job done.

After a turbulent campaign, that means keeping Swansea in the second tier.

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The Swans head to Humberside this Saturday in a fixture pressed firmly in the memory of any Swansea City fan, writes Ethan Latham.

The first game that springs to mind, well that’s easy.

An unforgettable hat-trick from local hero James Thomas led the Swans to victory in a game where their Football League survival was at stake, as Swansea came from 2-1 down to beat the Tigers 4-2 at the Vetch Field in 2003.

Lenny Johnrose fired in from close-range to restore Swansea's lead, before Thomas capped off the win with a magical chip, to preserve their status.

Both clubs have come a long way since then and Swansea are hoping that another memorable victory against Hull - this time in the Championship - will kick-start a new era for the club under manager Luke Williams, who is still seeking his first win.

A 570 mile round trip awaits, as the Swans hope to end a run of three league defeats on the bounce.

However, the MKM Stadium has not been a happy hunting ground with only one win at the stadium since it opened in 2002.

A Ki-Sung-Yueng goal gave Swansea their only win at Hull’s home in December 2014.

Since that sole victory, the Swans have only managed two draws in seven games, conceding 15 goals in the process.

Three points seemed all but secured in 2020, but a late Tom Eaves equaliser saved a point for Hull in a thrilling 4-4 draw.

A Luke Cundle leveller earned the Swans a point last season, but victory at Humberside has been hard to come by for Swansea over the years, with current Swansea defender and Hull native Josh Tymon on the scoresheet for the Tigers in a 2-0 win over Swansea in 2017.

The Tigers currently occupy the last play-off space in the Championship and will be looking to consolidate their place with victory.

Can Swansea spoil the party and get their season back on track?

Swansea fans - Have your say on the game here.

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Former Swansea City Academy coach Cameron Toshack was a guest on the BBC Sport Wales 'Feast of Football' podcast with former Wales striker Iwan Roberts this week.

Toshack was in charge of the under-18 and under-23 sides between 2013 and 2019 - a period spent mostly in the Premier League.

During his time at the club, Toshack says 19 players from the academy system made their first team debuts - and made millions of pounds of profit.

"At the time there were young players coming through, young players that we were trying to develop. Joe Rodon was a little bit younger but Connor Roberts, Liam Cullen," he said.

"So when we got through to the 23s we had the like of Roberts, Dan James and Rodon who are ironically now all playing for Leeds (Toshack’s former club).

"The ‘Swansea way’ was instilled in all of them. The value of the football.

"How, with patterns of play, we get out of difficult situations and how we create difficult situations for opponents.

"The return on investment - I believe it was £4.5 million a year to run an academy and they sold Connor to a Premier League club (Burnley), they sold Joe (Rodon) to Tottenham, a Premier League club, and they sold Oli (McBurnie) for over £20 million and Dan James for £20 million.

"The investment... turned into £60 million," Toshack - who also helped coach the first team on an interim basis - says.

He also thinks that the youngsters could have helped save Swansea from relegation from the Premier League in 2018.

"Perhaps I am a little bit biased but I do feel that the players (Roberts, James, Rodon, McBurnie) were ready before they had the opportunity," he said.

"But I also understand with the turnover of head coaches and the head coaches bringing in staff in who don’t know these players then they also have to make decisions around their job and how effective and how impactful they can be.

"Let’s face it, unfortunately too often it is a short term industry where people don’t get a chance.

"You’re risk averse (as a coach). Going back to the Swansea way and that academy, that was the most successful part of the football club, there was no doubt about it."

Swansea fans have been contacting us to have their say on the 1-0 defeat to Plymouth on Saturday.

Martin: Wake up Swansea. Going from bad to worse. There will be an inevitable result at the end of the season if things don't improve.

Robert: Swansea City are going down with this manager, no clue how to defend.

Jack: We need a holding midfielder to replace Matt Grimes and Jay Fulton starting together.

Alun: Swansea's owners have sold the fans and the club short, no ambition.

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With Luke Williams admitting missed chances cost Swansea against Plymouth, the fact a former Swansea forward scored the winner will have only added to frustrations.

Morgan Whittaker is proving an example of what could have been for the Swans and their struggles in front of goal.

The Argyle top scorer – whose goal at the Swansea.com Stadium was his17th of the season – could have made a deadline day move to Italian giants Lazio.

But there was another ex-Swansea striker whose January window move may have slipped under the radar of some fans in South Wales.

A few days before the deadline, Ipswich signed 21-year-old Iraq forward Ali Al-Hamadi from AFC Wimbledon on a four-and-a-half year deal.

He made his debut for the promotion-chasing Tractor Boys in their 3-2 defeat at Preston on Saturday having hit 23 goals for the Dons in 12 months after a move from Wycombe, the club he joined after leaving Swansea.

He had impressed in the academy ranks in South Wales, winning the Under-23 player of the year prize in 2021, but turned down a contract, claiming he thought his first-team chances were limited.

Game time at the Chairboys was limited but he caught the eye in a loan spell with Bromley – including starting as they beat Wrexham to win the FA Trophy in 2022 – before switching to the Dons and showing his finishing qualities.

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The fee for the move to Portman Road was undisclosed but it’s been reported as being seven figures, with Wimbledon claiming the deal could be a League Two record if incentives are met.

It won’t be long before he faces Swansea with Ipswich at home coming up a week on Saturday.

After Whittaker’s return, Williams will be hoping another former striker doesn’t make a point.

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Morgan Whittaker admits scoring the winner for Plymouth Argyle against former club Swansea City was the "perfect scenario".

The 23-year-old joined the Swans from Derby County in January 2021 but - after struggling for opportunities in Wales - signed for Plymouth last summer following a loan spell with the Pilgrims.

He has enjoyed a remarkable campaign with the Home Park outfit and could not hide his delight at netting against the club he left prior to the current campaign.

"I’m buzzing. It’s a perfect day really," said Whittaker.

"I’ve scored and it’s our first away win with a clean sheet. We have been waiting for a win like this, where we have had to dig in."

And on his Swans return, Whittaker said: "When you are in bed the night before, thinking about the game, this was the perfect scenario.

"I’m grateful it happened like this, but it was more important that we just got the win.

"I came into this game not wanting to put too much pressure on myself. I didn’t need to prove anything. I just needed to play my normal game."

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Gareth Vincent, BBC Sport Wales

Morgan Whittaker’s matchwinning performance on his return to Swansea City on Saturday made the decision to sell him to Plymouth Argyle last summer look like a glaring error.

Whittaker was outstanding in the first half, oozing a blend of power, pace and quality which Swansea failed to cope with.

The only bit of good news for Swansea when it comes to Whittaker’s form is that there was a significant sell-on clause in the £1m deal which saw him join Argyle on a permanent basis, so they should benefit when – as looks close to inevitable – he makes a big-money move away from Home Park at some point.

There were other positives for Luke Williams’ Swans this weekend, even as they succumbed to a fourth straight defeat in all competitions.

Firstly, they created enough chances to win three matches, never mind one, and secondly, in Ronald they had a wide player who looked capable of changing a game.

A lack of pace and dynamism out wide has been an issue for Swansea for far too long – which makes Whittaker’s exit all the more puzzling – but the signing of Ronald appears to have gone some way towards addressing that issue.

The 22-year-old Brazilian speaks no English and has only been in the country for a matter of days, but that did not stop him marking his first Swansea start with a display full of promise.

Ronald has shown already that he can do damage with his pace, he can beat a man and he is willing to compete physically – and that his delivery is also good.

With better finishing from Jamie Paterson and then Jerry Yates – twice – Ronald would have had three assists against Plymouth.

The one blot on Ronald's copybook was a shot with his weaker left foot which he sliced out for a throw-in, but his was a very encouraging home debut.

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Luke Williams says Swansea City will pull clear of Championship relegation danger if they continue to perform as they did in defeat to Plymouth Argyle.

Swansea missed a succession of big chances to get back into the game after going behind to Morgan Whittaker’s first-half goal, which ultimately proved decisive.

A third successive league defeat leaves Swansea, who last won on New Year’s Day, only five points clear of the relegation zone with fixtures against Hull City, Leeds United, Ipswich Town and Sunderland to come next.

Asked about Swansea’s increasingly worrying league position, Williams said: “I don’t like that, of course I don’t like that.

“We need to concentrate on trying to play really well.

“If we can create 19 chances every week [as Swansea did against Plymouth] and create openings in the six-yard box, we’d have to be a very unlucky team to suffer more.

“We have some tough fixtures but that’s the job. There’s no sulking or feeling sorry for myself.

“It’s just about trying to get training right, pick the right team, give the players the right motivation and give them the clarity they need.”

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Swansea City have suffered another injury blow with Harrison Ashby another facing a spell in the sidelines.

On-loan Newcastle United defender Ashby only recently returned to action after almost two months out with a hamstring issue.

He is now set for another lay-off, joining fellow right-sided defensive options Josh Key, Harry Darling, Azeem Abdulai and Sam Parker on the injured list.

Veteran Kyle Naughton played in Saturday’s defeat to Plymouth Argyle and may now be set for a run in the Swansea team.

“He has a muscular problem so he is going to be a few weeks,” said head coach Luke Williams. “We are not going to be able to put an exact time on it yet.”