Outside90 and Dispensable Soccer continue our examination of the Swansea City management dilemma.
In Garry Monk the Swans believed they had one of England’s truly great young footballing minds.
Previously under Brendan Rodgers the club finished 11th in their debut Premiership season, and with the Great Dane Michael Laudrup, made it up to ninth and also won the League Cup. But Laudrup was controversially axed early in 2014 and was replaced by the club veteran Monk.
Eyebrows were raised at this decision, as Laudrup had achieved a lot in his short spell at the helm, and Monk had no prior managerial experience. Fan reception was immediately raucous though, as the then 35-year-old guided Swansea to a 3-0 win over bitter rivals Cardiff in his first game.
Monk would go on to establish the Welsh club as Premiership stalwarts with an impressive eighth place finish, despite losing star striker Wilfried Bony to Manchester City in January.
READ MORE: Guidolin deserves more than his inevitable sacking from Swansea (Part 1)
Fast forward to December 2015 and, despite an encouraging start to the season, Swansea were left perilously above the relegation zone – leading to a rather bizarre sacking of goldenboy Monk.
Guidolin was sworn in to expressionless faces of Swans fans everywhere. Not only were many unfamiliar with the Italian’s work history, there were question marks over his ability to handle the stresses of an intense relegation scrap and his ability to grasp the English language at such a crucial time.
Perhaps what the board saw in their new appointment was a man who knew how to get a struggling side back on track, and sharpish.
Swansea strengthened upon his arrival, signing striker Alberto Paloschi from Chievo and Leroy Fer on loan, however, they were weakened to greater effect with the departure of the mercurial Jonjo Shelvey to Newcastle.
Despite promising early season displays, the form of Andre Ayew and Jefferson Montero deteriorated rapidly. While the Italian saw his side scrape 1-0 wins over Watford and then Everton in his first two matches as manager, the Welsh side did not record a victory for the entirety of February – and it was not pretty to watch.
Owner Hew Jenkins, usually a steady hand, was no doubt worrying for his club’s future at this stage, following his huge Monk shaped gamble.
Since then, Guidolin has done his chances of holding on to the job the world of good, with a recent spout of victories making his overall record look rather impressive, seven wins and three draws from his 15 games in charge.
While admittedly many of the Swans’ best displays since Guidolin’s arrival came when club legend Alan Curtis was at the helm, it is not too bad considering the dire straights the team was in upon his arrival.
“He (Guidolin) has brought exactly what he thought he would bring to us,” said Jenkins speaking to the BBC recently.
“He has brought in a bit of common sense and a bit of simplicity, as well as experience.
“I don’t think those simple things are highlighted enough in the modern world of football.”
Sure, the two recent wins over Chelsea and Liverpool were against under strength teams with other things on their mind (the beach in the Londoners’ case), a 4-1 Upton Park win against Champions League chasers West Ham, however, was undeniably impressive.
For once the Welshmen strayed away from unconvincing defensive sensibilities that have so far this season become a staple of Guidolin’s reign, instead the visiting fans could be delighted with fast incisive attacking football, the same style he had demanded from his Udinese side five years prior. Of course his former employers were not just devastating attackers, they were first and foremost difficult to beat. Perhaps this has been too much of a focus up until now.
Although Swansea City are set to be taken over by American investors in stunning deal worth up to £100m, Jenkins will still remain the man in the driving seat when it comes to club decisions.
One very large factor when it comes to deciding who will be in charge of Swansea next season will be who exactly the chairman trusts with the new investors’ money.
This is one area that Guidolin will surely get the benefit of the doubt ahead of any other potential suitors. The former Udinese hero is not prone to spending large amounts to get songs out of his sides.
Under the Italian’s stewardship, world class players such as Andrea Barzagli and Edinson Cavani were brought into Palermo for next-to-nothing fees. Not only that, he has proven an expert in nurturing young talented players, including the likes of Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez, in which he blossomed when paired with the experience of Di Natale at Udinese, and Bayern Munich’s star centre-half Medhi Benatia, who likewise got first team exposure under Guidolin.
While the management merry-go-round shows no sign of being any less cruel, surely Guidolin should expect at least one full transfer window to shape a raggedy side, one with much dead wood, into one that is truly in his own image
After all, he has done far more with far less.
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