Swansea City

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Swansea City midfielder Marko Stamenic has paid tribute to his father after his death last month.

Stamenic is currently on compassionate leave, with Swansea boss Alan Sheehan telling the New Zealand international to spend "as long as he wants" away from the Championship club.

Alongside a picture of him and dad Nikola, Stamenic wrote on social media:, external "My father, my role model, my life.

"Dad you were nothing short of the best man I will ever know. The echoes of our love, happiness and even the sadness we faced together will forever fill my heart.

"May you rest in peace. I love you more than anything."

Stamenic has missed Swansea's past three games as a result of his father's passing, and seems unlikely to feature in their home fixture against Ipswich Town this Saturday.

When available, the 23-year-old has been a regular in Sheehan's Swansea side since joining from Nottingham Forest in August.

Gareth Vincent
BBC Sport Wales

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Alan Sheehan rightly pointed out after defeat at Preston North End that his Swansea City side might easily be in a much better league position.

Swansea had enough control in last weekend's draw at Charlton to claim three points rather than one.

And Swansea were so dominant at Deepdale on Wednesday that a draw would have been a disappointment, never mind the 2-1 loss they suffered.

To lose on a night when Swansea had 18 efforts on goal compared to Preston's four must have left Sheehan cursing his side's attacking failings all the way home to Wales.

"Anybody who has watched our last two games… you could come out with six points easily and be in a totally different position," Sheehan said.

"We have come out with one and we are very disappointed with that. That's the margins in this league."

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The issue for Swansea is that too often this season, they have finished up on the wrong side of the Championship's fine margins.

As a result, they sit 17th in the table with almost a third of the campaign already behind them.

Sheehan expects better. The club expect better.

Swansea remain closer to the play-off places – the gap is six points – than they are to the bottom three, with 22nd-placed Norwich City eight points worse off than Sheehan's side.

Had they won their two games this week, Swansea would be on the fringes of the top six with 22 points.

As it stands, the play-off places appear some way off for a Swansea team who have won only two league games since August.

An upturn in results is required, and a win over Ipswich Town on Saturday would be very timely.

Lose this weekend, however, and Sheehan will be left licking wounds once more during the international break.

Preston North End will look to strengthen their position in the top six as they host Swansea City on Wednesday (19:45 GMT).

Following Tuesday's results, the Lilywhites cannot be displaced from their sixth spot but can climb to fourth should they earn themselves a third successive win at Deepdale.

Swansea, meanwhile, can extend their distance from the bottom three into double digits and drag themselves further up into the midtable.

• Preston North End have lost only one of their last nine home league games against Swansea City (W5 D3), going four without loss at Deepdale to the Swans since a 1-0 loss in September 2020 (W3 D1).

• Swansea City are unbeaten in their last three league meetings with Preston North End (W2 D1), keeping a clean sheet in the last two – they last went three in a row against PNE without conceding in 1930.

• Preston North End have lost only five of their 30 home league games since the start of last season, but PNE have drawn more home Championship matches than any other side in that period (W11 D14).

• Swansea City failed to win a single midweek (Tue/Wed/Thu) away league game between November 2022 and October 2024 (P12 D5 L7), but have since won on three of their six midweek trips (D1 L2).

• Preston North End's Daniel Jebbison has scored in two of his last three home appearances in the league (two goals), having gone 24 home outings without a goal prior.

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Malick Yalcouye is back from suspension for Swansea City's trip to Preston North End on Wednesday (19:45 GMT) but there are again doubts over Marko Stamenic and Zan Vipotnik.

Yalcouye is available having served a three-match ban following his red card in the 1-0 home defeat to Queens Park Rangers last month.

The on-loan Brighton youngster will give Alan Sheehan a welcome option in midfield, particularly with Stamenic looking unlikely to return having missed last Saturday's draw at Charlton because of a close family bereavement.

Sheehan has told New Zealand international Stamenic to spend "as long as he wants" on compassionate leave.

Swansea, meanwhile, have been assessing Vipotnik's fitness after he missed the Charlton draw having suffered a quad injury in training last Friday.

Vipotnik, Swansea's eight-goal leading scorer, has been named in the Slovenia squad for their games against Kosovo and Sweden in the upcoming international break.

Swansea, who are 16th in the Championship, have won once in their past six games in all competitions.

Sixth-placed Preston also have a number of injury issues as they target a third straight league win.

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Luke Williams said Swansea City are still "in my heart" after he knocked fierce Welsh rivals Cardiff City out of the FA Cup on his return to management.

The former Swans boss was sacked by Swansea in February after a poor run of one win in 10 Championship games.

Williams had spent 13 months as head coach at the Swansea.com Stadium following Michael Duff's departure.

The 44-year-old is back in football as boss of League One strugglers Peterborough United, and marked his first game in charge by dumping Cardiff out of the FA Cup with a 1-0 first-round win at London Road.

Asked whether beating the Bluebirds felt sweeter because of his Swans connections, Williams said: "I've had a couple of messages from people from Swansea that I'm very fond of.

"[Cardiff] are a brilliant team. I love the way they play, the manager is superb. But of course Swansea are in my heart."

Williams' priority at Peterborough is to keep them in League One. Posh are currently five points from safety at the bottom of the table, having won only three of their 13 games this season - a run that cost Darren Ferguson his job last week.

But Williams hopes his experience at Swansea will help lift them away from danger.

"Having worked with some of the players at Swansea...[they were] so talented that they taught me a lot of things, and some of the teams in the Championship are amazing," he said.

"So hopefully those experiences will stand me in good stead."

Gareth Vincent
BBC Sport Wales

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The loss of Zan Vipotnik for any length of time will be a negative for Swansea City, but Alan Sheehan must hope his leading scorer's injury proves to be good news for his record signing.

Vipotnik has been in spectacular form this season, scoring eight goals in 15 club games having netted on only seven occasions during 2024-25, his maiden campaign as a Swansea player.

The Slovenia international's form has left Idah playing a back-up role since he arrived from Celtic on 1 September.

But with Vipotnik forced to watch on from the stands at Charlton Athletic on Saturday thanks to a quad injury, Idah was handed a starting chance and duly produced the goal which earned his team a point.

Idah's fine finish brought his first open-play goal in Swansea colours, with his only other strike coming from the penalty spot against Leicester City almost a month ago.

The hope for Sheehan will be that the £6m Republic of Ireland forward – Swansea's most expensive signing outside their seven-year stint in the Premier League – can kick on having made his mark at The Valley.

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"I think he led the line well [at Charlton]," the Swansea head coach said.

"He has a different profile to Vipi (Viptonik) so we have to change different things with him in the team. But he got a goal and on another day he could have had two or three."

Sheehan is right. Idah saw a volley go over – though that chance was far from simple – and a header bounce wide, while he ran through on goal at one stage in the first half only to be snuffed out by the home defence when a square ball would have teed up a golden chance for Goncalo Franco.

Idah would probably acknowledge himself that there is room for improvement.

The good news from his point of view is that Swansea have two more games on the horizon, at Preston North End on Wednesday and at home to Ipswich next weekend.

Assuming Vipotnik is facing a spell on the sidelines, this looks like being Idah's first clear opportunity to establish himself in the Swansea team.

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Former Swansea City manager Colin Addison has died at the age of 85.

Addison led Swansea during one of the most traumatic spells in their history after being appointed as successor to John Hollins in September 2001.

Tony Petty bought Swansea for £1 the following month, prompting a traumatic spell at the then fourth-tier club in which the Australia-based businessman controversially attempted to sack players and tried to reduce wages to cut costs.

In January 2002, Petty sold the club to a consortium of businessmen – as well as the supporters' trust – in a move which eventually led to Swansea reaching the Premier League.

But Addison, who also managed the likes of Atletico Madrid and Hereford United, departed in March 2002 after the new Swansea board decided against offering him a new contract.

Nick Cusack then had a brief spell as Swansea boss before making way for Brian Flynn, who saved the club from relegation to non-league football in 2003 before their rise up the divisions began.

Charlton welcome Swansea to The Valley on Saturday (15:00 GMT) seeking to build on their fast start to the Championship season.

The newly-promoted Addicks have taken 19 points from their opening 12 games to sit sixth, have taken 10 points from their five home fixtures so far and have lost just once in their past eight matches overall.

The Swans are 13th but only three points back, having picked up seven points from their past four away games, but went down 3-1 at home to Man City in the EFL Cup fourth round on Tuesday.

• Charlton Athletic have won just one of their past nine league games against Swansea City (D2 L6), with this the first meeting between the sides since a 1-0 victory for the Swans in January 2020.

• Swansea City have won two of their past four away league games against Charlton Athletic (D1 L1), as many victories as across their first 18 away trips to the London side (D5 L11).

• Charlton have lost just one of their past 20 home league games (W15 D4), averaging 1.8 goals per game during that time.

• Swansea remain the only team yet to score from a set-piece (excluding penalties) in the 2025-26 Championship campaign, while only Coventry City (11) and Oxford United (10) have scored more such goals than Charlton Athletic (7).

• Only Birmingham City (6) have won more points from goals scored in the 90th minute or later than Charlton Athletic (5) in the Championship so far this season, with the Addicks earning a point against Hull last time out in the 91st minute.

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Alan Sheehan says Swansea City will consider sending Bobby Wales out on loan in January if the striker remains outside the first-team picture at the Championship club.

Wales has played only 27 minutes of first-team football since joining Swansea from Kilmarnock in the summer.

He scored on his debut after coming off the bench in the Carabao Cup tie against Crawley, then appeared briefly in Swansea's Championship win over Sheffield United, but has not featured since August.

Sheehan says the 20-year-old's lack of opportunities is down to competition for places in Swansea's attack.

"He has Vipi (Zan Vipotnik) in serious form and Adam [Idah] there. It's been difficult to get him involved," the Swansea head coach said.

"But that's not down to anything he's done. His attitude has been exceptional.

"He is our player. Sometimes you are closer than you think you are [to playing games]. If the opportunity comes where he needs to get regular football, we need to have a conversation and see how he feels."

Sheehan added that 19-year-old academy product Sam Parker, who has made two Carabao Cup appearances so far this season, is another who may also be a candidate for a loan spell come the January transfer window.

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Alan Sheehan will do battle with a man who has had a big influence on his career when Swansea City go to Charlton Athletic on Saturday (15:00 GMT).

Swansea head coach Sheehan will go up against Nathan Jones having spent many years on the same side as the Welshman.

Former left-back Sheehan was enduring a difficult spell at Bradford City when he joined Jones' Luton Town on loan in January 2016.

Sheehan ended up as club captain at Luton, where he helped Jones' team win promotion from League Two in 2018 and then from League One 12 months later.

The Irishman left Kenilworth Road in 2020 to continue his playing career, but then returned to join Jones' Luton coaching staff in 2022 before following him to Southampton later that year.

After being dismissed by Saints in February 2023, Jones and Sheehan went their separate ways, with the latter joining Swansea's staff that summer.

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But it is safe to assume there will be plenty of respect on the touchline at the Valley this weekend as Sheehan faces his former boss.

"It will be the first time that we come up against each other as managers," Sheehan said. "And I think it will be a very difficult game."

Jones is something of a controversial figure in the eyes of Swansea's fans, thanks chiefly to the fact that he supports their south Wales rivals Cardiff City.

But after his previous successes at Luton, the 52-year-old is once again thriving at Charlton, with his team sixth in the Championship table having won promotion from League One last season.

"It's a team that's built up a lot of momentum in the last year or so and a very difficult team to play against from what I have seen," Sheehan added.

"They beat Ipswich 3-0 away the other day and they are in the play-off places at the moment, so we understand it's going to be a very difficult game."

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Former Wales striker Iwan Roberts believes Cardiff City's Rubin Colwill is a better number 10 option for Craig Bellamy than Swansea City's Liam Cullen.

Colwill is enjoying a fine run of form at Cardiff, where he has scored four goals in 17 appearances so far this season.

But the 23-year-old, who was a late call-up to the national squad in this month's international window, is still to convince Wales boss Bellamy that he should be part of his team.

Swansea's Cullen, who has spent most of his career as a striker, has been used in a deeper role by Bellamy.

Roberts argues Colwill is better suited to that position than his Swansea counterpart, and that he should be utilised more by Wales.

"If you are going to go with two numbers 10s against maybe the smaller nations, when the onus is on us to go and attack, I think he is a better player in that position than Liam Cullen," Roberts told this week's Feast of Football podcast.

"I think Liam Cullen is a more of a centre-forward. I don't think he has got the technical ability Rubin has got.

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"I think he's got better ability, he's better on the ball. He can pick a pass, he can open a defence. I think Liam Cullen ideally, if I look at the way Swansea play, I think he'd be better close to Zan Viptonik as a second centre-forward."

Roberts says Colwill is performing "on a weekly basis" at Cardiff because Bluebirds boss Brian Barry-Murphy has focused on the academy product's strengths rather than his weaknesses.

Cullen, meanwhile, has faced a battle for game-time at Swansea thanks to the fine form of Slovenia forward Vipotnik and the £6m signing of Adam Idah.

However, another ex-Wales international, Sam Vokes, says Cullen is worthy of his place.

"I think that's one of our strongest positions," Vokes said on Feast of Football.

"I like Liam Cullen. He had a much stronger season last season in terms of numbers and output wise. I like him in that position.

"Right now I don't think he (Colwill) breaks into our starting line-up, but he can be used as a good back-up or someone to bring in if we are struggling to unlock a side."

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Pep Guardiola said he did not expect anything other than a fierce challenge at Swansea City after Manchester City had to come from behind to knock the Championship club out of the Carabao Cup.

Manchester City will host Brentford in the quarter-finals having come through what threatened to be a difficult night at Swansea on Wednesday.

Alan Sheehan's Swansea side were excellent in the opening half-hour, playing with energy and intensity and going in front thanks to a sparkling Goncalo Franco goal.

But Jeremy Doku's deflected shot brought Manchester City level before the break and the Premier League heavyweights controlled the second period, with late goals from Omar Marmoush and Rayan Cherki sending them into the last eight.

Guardiola acknowledged that Swansea had made life hard for his team, saying: "It could not be otherwise.

"This competition, away against Swansea, a team historically who always played really, really good. They started fantastic and they got the goal.

"But after that, 20-25 minutes, we got the game and the second half was brilliant to attack in most spaces. We didn't go to transition and everywhere the commitment [was there]."

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Former Wales striker Iwan Roberts says the pressure is off Swansea City in tonight's Carabao Cup last-16 tie as they host Premier League powers Manchester City.

"It is. I think they've lost their last seven against Manchester City. I think in their last 13, they've lost 12, just one draw in the Premier League to show for, but I think it's a night for them to enjoy," Roberts told BBC Radio Wales Breakfast.

Pep Guardiola's side have won the EFL Cup in six of past 12 seasons, with Swansea famously claiming the trophy in 2013 when they upset Bradford City.

Man City are expected to field a much-changed side from the one that lost in the Premier League to Aston Villa last weekend.

Guardiola said in his pre-match press conference that: "The Carabao Cup has always been like that in the first stages. We have less injured [players this season] and we have players who need minutes, so the Carabao Cup is perfect for that."

He also hinted that goal machine Erling Haaland - who already has 11 in just nine league games this season - could be rested as they "don't need to risk him", with the Norwegian striker getting "a knock" at Villa Park.

While even a second-string Man City team will start as overwhelming favourites against their Championship hosts, Roberts says Swansea go into the game with their own centre forward in fine form

Zan Vipotnik scored a spectacular brace as the Swans beat Norwich City 2-1 on Saturday, taking the Slovenia striker's tally for the season to nine goals for club and country.

"You know, they've [Swansea] got a centre forward that's bang in form in Zan Vipotnik, two fantastic goals he scored against Norwich at the weekend," Roberts added.

"It's a tall order, but I'm sure it's a night that Swansea fans will really enjoy."

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Swansea City may not have to deal with Premier League top scorer Erling Haaland when they host Manchester City in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday.

The Norwegian striker was limping heavily during Sunday's league defeat at Aston Villa after colliding with a post when he had a goal disallowed for offside.

His absence would be a big boost for Alan Sheehan's men as the 25-year-old has been in blistering form this season, scoring 15 goals in 12 appearances for club and country.

Man City boss Pep Guardiola said the trip to Swansea is an opportunity to rest the Norway striker, with Omar Marmoush and Rayan Cherki in contention to start.

He said: "I haven't seen Erling today but it was a knock, and day by day it is better. We train this afternoon [Tuesday], we will find out how he feels and decide if he can play."

Midfielder Rodri is training and is "getting better" after sustaining a hamstring injury before the international break, but remains out.