Swans aim to pull clear of rivals

Jan 22 2008 by Tim Lewis, Western Mail

SWANSEA CITY boss Roberto Martinez has identified the visit of Crewe tonight as a “massive opportunity” for the League One top-dogs to take a commanding lead over the chasing pack.

Victory would move the Swans eight points clear of second-placed Carlisle at the summit and a further point ahead of Nottingham Forest in third.

With no other teams in the top six playing tonight, Swansea could put a solid 10 points between themselves and much-fancied Leeds.

The Swans have shaken off the stuttering home form that dogged the early part of the season and another win would make it seven home league wins in a row – a run of form not seen since 1999-2000 under John Hollins.

Martinez (pictured below) said, “It’s a great chance for us. What we have to do now is concentrate on ourselves because we have a massive opportunity and then two very difficult away games before we come back to the Liberty.

“We looked at improving our home form and I think we have done that. But we still need to continue that improvement in some areas and keep becoming a better squad of players.

“Looking back now it’s been a good level of performance both home and away for some time and that is very pleasing.

“Probably the result we are most disappointed about is the Swindon game because we were one kick away from getting a very good result, but overall the level of performance has been very positive.”

If they do win tonight Martinez insists the added weight of expectation will not affect him or the players.

“The expectation is always there with Swansea City and that’s never going to change, so the more points we can get the better,” he said.

“In the league you need to get into March and April in a good position and see how it goes from there.

Difficult away days at Doncaster on Friday and Nottingham Forest next Tuesday mean Martinez must make full use of the players available to him.

With no new injury concerns after Saturday’s 2-0 victory over Port Vale, he is keen to stress the importance of keeping the squad in the best possible shape.

He said, “With the demands we ask of our players, with the way we play, it is impossible to play games on the Saturday, Tuesday and Friday and get the same end product.

“I need to make sure the squad is fresh enough to produce every game. At the moment we have to base our training around the games because we have to play so many, everything is positive as long as I can keep the players fresh.”

Centre-half Dennis Lawrence was left out of the match-day squad on Saturday - but Martinez insisting it is all part of the long-term plan.

“Dennis has been outstanding this season, he has played every single league game except Saturday,” he said.

“We are top of the league so he must be doing something right.

“We need to make sure everyone’s as fresh as they can be and Dennis is the same.

“At Swansea we have huge competition within the squad so players cannot afford to take their eye of the ball because they will get punished.

“When you slow down in your performance you get someone else that is coming flying past you, so it doesn’t allow for any complacency.”

Crewe visit Swansea off the back of a 1-0 defeat to promotion-chasing Carlisle.

Alex boss Steve Holland left out top scorer Gary Roberts after he failed to show up for training twice last week.

Roberts is expected to be back in the 16 by the time the Railwaymen arrive at the Liberty but is unlikely to go straight back into the starting line-up.

Despite their position just two points above the League One relegation zone, Martinez expects a difficult game.

He said, “Everyone in football knows what they have done over the years, they have set a fantastic example of how to create great players and get them playing at the highest level.

“The way they play football they are always a dangerous side.

“Obviously they didn’t start this season the way they would have wanted but they had a lot of injuries and that held them back.

“Now they have players fit and are trying to bring in a few more ahead of the game, so we know they are going to fight for every single point.

“They will want to try and get the ball down and play but because of the situation they are in they also need to fight for every point.

“There will no doubt be some strong, physical challenges and we have to be ready for that.

“But they also have some fantastic players, (Nick) Maynard up front is someone with Premiership potential and they have a mix of players with good experience in the lower leagues.”

One aspect that may have a influence on the game will be the Liberty Stadium pitch, which started to show signs of wear towards the end of Saturday’s game.

After another week of torrential rain in South Wales, Martinez is praying the game gets the green light.

“It is important that we can get through this period because the weather is a worry and the last thing we need is another game called off,” he explained.

“If you look at the Liberty Stadium surface you can see there’s been a lot of water and it will be difficult to get the ball running at the normal speed.

“We are a little bit concerned about how it will develop between now and kick off but the pitch has never given us problems before so hopefully it will be fine.”