Swansea City: Odd decisions costing Swansea their season?

As we move closer to the business end of the 2016/17 season, there are just eight Premier League games left for Swansea to prove they are worthy of another season in the top flight.

Unfortunately the new life and vibrancy Paul Clement brought to the club seems to be wearing off – at the worst possible time.

When he first joined, back at the start of January, Clement looked invincible (but then again, so too would any manager after the reign of Bob Bradley). However, in the last few games he’s looked… well, out of ideas.

To illustrate let’s look at the last few weeks. Around a month ago we were heading into a crucial period where three consecutive games were all branded as traditional ‘six pointers’ – Hull, Bournemouth and Middlesbrough.

Sadly, of the actual nine points on offer we claimed just one, thanks to the uninspired goalless draw against Boro on Sunday.

Even more worrying, those three games saw our last ‘easy run’ of the season come to an end. The next few weeks include games against Spurs and West Ham, with Man United, Everton and Stoke all on the horizon. Nobody expects us to get much – if anything – out of those matches.

After such a positive start, it looks like we are back in the same position as we have been all season – in a relegation scrap.

Why? Although not fully to blame, Paul Clement has made a few odd decisions in recent games – decisions that have some fans questioning his judgement.

Decisions such as starting Leroy Fer at right back against Bournemouth – that certainly caused a bit of head scratching. Injuries forced him into it, but why Fer? Why not change the formation, or give a more defensive-minded player a run out – or even give one of the youngsters from the impressive U23 squad a chance?

Then came his decision to make zero subs against Boro – a game that was screaming for the introduction of some speed. Just something different would have done.

Of course, injuries again had a part to play, with no Fernando Llorente on the pitch and no-one to head in one of the 50-odd wasted crosses. However what’s wrong with Borja Baston? Surely he’s got some some of talent to suggest he’s worth the £15.5million!

It’s hard to analyse, but the problem once again can’t be reduced to one aspect – just as it’s been throughout the season.

This weekend it wasn’t just Paul Clement’s fault, just like it wasn’t solely Bob Bradley’s fault. The players can certainly take some of the blame, but not all of it. The board deserve some stick for not bringing in enough talent, but again on match days it’s not them out on the field. I guess the only part of Swansea City who don’t deserve blame at this stage is the fans.

Whatever happens over the next seven weeks, it’s likely to come down to the last few games. If Hull and Middlesbrough have a bad run, we may be alright. But it’ll be tough to drag those above us back into it.

Ultimately the Swans can no longer rely on other teams to slip up. It’s up to us to put pressure on everyone else. Just get out there and win a few games! Eight games, 24 points up for grabs, take half of those and we should be fine. Sounds simple doesn’t it?