Will Swansea ever find the right balance?

How would you describe Swansea City's season in one word well 'disastrous'. It really has been poor at every level from the board, players and staff alike, it's very unlike the club we all fell in love with.

I could write all day about how the whole Garry Monk saga has been a mess but so much time has passed and quite frankly it was the right decision going forward.

Moving on...

The appointment of Francesco Guidolin has been underwhelming in all honesty. Reports coming in after the Bournemouth defeat are suggesting that the Swans plan on parting company with the Italian at the end of the season.

In essence the whole process, the sacking of Monk, and the month surrounding it, chucking in club legend Alan Curtis who is a rookie in management as temporary manager was lazy at best.

We all know the success Garry had it's been well documented just as his failures have as well, but it was a risk which worked well but it shouldn't have to be a risk at England's highest level of football.

Alan Curtis did well over the Christmas period there were positive signs looking at the Man City result as a stand out but just like they have all season Swansea played in spurts and gaps which isn't good enough at this level.

Remember this was going on whilst the club were actively looking for a new manager and were struggling on all fronts whether it was Marcelo Bielsa or Jorge Sampaoli it became another mess.

It wasn't exactly happening on the pitch either and clearly off the pitch affairs were affecting on, it was average in games against West Ham, West Brom, Palace and Sunderland and lets not forget the disaster at Oxford in the FA Cup but the players have to take more than their fair share of blame.

So finally when Guidolin finally arrived almost six weeks later this had a feeling of a panic buy on deadline day and everyone knew it. Google and Youtube were raided to see what the new man was about but if it's THAT under the radar then you know it's coming across as desperate.

The result at Watford just before he took charge was a gentle reprieve but if Ashley Williams hadn't got his head on that cross that would have been another poor result and you wouldn't have begrudged the Hornets that either.

So what's changed since?

Well not much really, there's still a defensive frailty which mirrors the sides around them and the set piece problems which have been an achilles heel for years and years has seemed to get even worse under the Italian.

There's a renowned pressing game which he's implemented but it seems like not all the players are buying into it because you see some players chasing as Sigurdsson, Paloschi and a fluttering of others but just like in rugby if you're going to keep a high press everyone needs to follow because if one comes out of the line you can be easily picked off and that's what's happening.

The signings of Alberto Paloschi and Leroy Fer are both signings especially the latter a side of a side in current disarray.

Paloschi isn't the biggest nor is he the fastest but you can tell he's more of a back up striker and not first choice at a bigger club with respect to Chievo of course. He's shown in glimpses like his debut, Tottenham and a few occasions in other games but just like the manager who brought him in it's been inconsistent which mirrors the club's season.

Leroy Fer probably sums up the season more than anyone. I still can't believe that Swansea managed to steal the result away at Arsenal and Fer was instrumental in that game and followed it up by coming off the bench to get the assist in the massive game against Norwich last weekend.

Everyone wanted the Dutchman to start against Bournemouth away yesterday and the wish was granted and what happened, his defensive discipline was apparent which was so obvious at Norwich and QPR where he plied his trade before and it contributed to Bournemouth's second goal and thus another awful defensive performance.

You could argue that players like Federico Fernandez, Angel Rangel and Neil Taylor have become poorer players under Guidolin which is worrying considering the run in of fixtures coming up.

I personally believe Taylor has had more opportunities than young Stephen Kingsley who was naive against Joel Campbell at the Emirates but efficient going forward and will get better with more appearances but the same doesn't seem evident for Neil Taylor.

The same for Rangel who has had more than enough chances he's been a superb servant but age is catching up with the Spaniard and I believe Naughton hasn't had enough cracks of the whip to warrant sitting on the bench.

Many people believe that Guidolin has had a great effect on players like Gylfi Sigurdsson and recently Modou Barrow but I personally believe that's down to the departure of Jonjo Shelvey which was a great piece of business. Barrow has benefited from his creative instinct not being stemmed by a rigid shape.

He's the kind of player you would tell "Go out there and play your natural game and just beat your man" something a certain Jefferson Montero would have been told before that superb start to the season.

Anyone who follows my twitter feed will know my disgust in Wayne Routledge's continued place in the team, he's contributed 1 goal and 0 assists and he's been nothing short of a Championship player all season.

Just compare his contribution to Barrow on the weekend who got a goal and played a part in the Swans second. The biggest compliment you can give the Gambian is that's when the Swans tide shifted back to Bournemouth when he left the field.

All we want as football fans of any club whether it's Barcelona or whether it's Cambridge you just want players to give their all and play to the best of their ability. With that comes consistency and then a set of results should follow but there hasn't been a stable period of success at the Liberty all season.

Off the pitch you want the chiefs in charge to be prepared and organised for every opportunity. Which up until the last 18 months you could argue Huw Jenkins and co were doing.

So will Swansea find the right balance well time is starting to run out and you can't keep relying on the likes of Newcastle, Sunderland and Norwich to keep struggling especially with easier run ins.

I don't have a solution to any of the problems the Swans are facing this season only ideas, someone needs to be appointed who can focus solely on defensive set pieces because at this level it could be the difference between staying up or not, think a massive centre half with plenty of experience.

Changes need to be made at the back even Fabianski hasn't been exempt from criticism this season, but Amat proved a steady deputy at Arsenal and Kingsley will flourish from youthful exuberance which seems to be drilled out of Swansea at the moment and Naughton deserves a run in the team.

At the other end of the field, Paloschi and Bafetimbi Gomis are clear they can't play as lone strikers it's pretty obvious but why do other teams have so much more success playing one up front well it's simple... movement.

You'd rather lose but create plenty of opportunities say 4-2 down than lose 1-0 and have one half chance and that's been the problem all season. Play Barrow with Ayew and both strikers haven't exactly lit their season up but Paloschi has had less chances so stick with the Italian but play to his strengths he's not going to win headers but he will make the runs so pick the guy out.

The Premier League is a physical league and more sides are opting for physicality especially for easy set piece goals look at West Brom and Palace, when you're not playing well trust Gylfi with a delivery for some players to attack and currently Swansea don't have those players.

Ki, Cork, Rangel, Taylor are all small players who have technical ability but unfortunately thats not how the game is currently being played. Even the centre halves aren't physically imposing and especially don't notch enough goals in comparison to others.

I'm not saying a team of 6ft 2 giants are needed in every position, Barcelona don't do it and they succeed very well but that's a team who have players who can hurt you but only because their put in a position to do so. The current formation is the right one of course it is, but there needs to be a fluidity to that and unfortunately I don't believe Francesco Guidolin is the answer.

Too many times this season have we lose the midfield battle which we've often dominated in the past because we have players who won't put in a shift or there's not a balance which has been struck to get the best out of every player.

Aston Villa next up, it's not a banker and shouldn't be viewed as one because Villa will see it as a game they can definitely take 3 points from and so they should. It's a simple must win but there needs to be an element of conviction with the performance to send a message to their rivals because fail to win on the weekend and I firmly believe Swansea are back in it and you can't say they don't deserve to be.

Fabianski - Naughton - Amat - Williams - Kingsley - Cork - Fer - Ayew - Sigurdsson - Barrow - Paloschi