Five things we learned as Graham Potter wins his first game in English football

Swansea City take all the points after a barnstorming last 20 minutes at Bramall Lane which saw them defeat Sheffield United 2-1. 

New Swans boss Graham Potter has seen 12 players depart this summer following their relegation from the Premier League, and it showed, as Swansea took over an hour to get going this afternoon.

The first half at Bramall Lane was a lacklustre affair, but proceedings came to life when Sheffield United grabbed the opener in the second.

George Baldock’s opener was all Potter’s men needed to spring into action as they piled the pressure on Sheffield’s defence with half an hour left on the clock.

Goals from Oliver McBurnie and a late winner from Yan Dhanda secured victory in south Yorkshire this afternoon.

Here’s the five things we learned from this afternoon’s game

Sheffield need to improve in the final third

Sheffield Utd were solid defensively for much of this afternoon’s game, but they didn’t manage to craft anything of note going forward.

David McGoldrick came close to breaking the deadlock in the second half, but he dragged his shot wide of the post.

George Baldock eventually opened the scoring with a quality goal after an hour of poor quality football – it was the Blades’ first shot on target. Baldock’s goal injected some much needed adrenaline into this game and the Swans responded well with a goal from Oliver McBurnie, his first for the club.

Dream day for Graham Potter

Potter’s success with Swedish side Ostersund, whom he took from the fourth tier of Swedish football to the top flight, earned him high expectations when he arrived at the Liberty Stadium earlier this year, and he has got off to a flying start.

Swansea’s players looked out of harmony with each other at times this afternoon, as they failed to mount sustained pressure on Sheffield United’s defence for the first hour. This might have had something to do with the fact that the Swans have let go of so many first team players since being relegated from the Premier League.

The Welsh outfit have shed 12 players since going down, including key players Luksz Fabianski, Roque Mesa and Alfie Mawson. Potter will  have to put some more work on the training ground before these players are comfortable with each other.

This changed considerably when Sheffield United went a goal ahead. Potter’s side turned on the intensity, played some intricate football and grabbed two goals after sustained spells of pressure on the Blades’ defence.

Mckay can play

Barrie Mckay made a good start with Swansea City, as the 23-year-old Scotland international completed more take-ons than any other player and demonstrated quick thinking and even quicker feet during today’s clash.

A little dink he made around a defender to initiate one of the few attacks the Swans manged in the first half was magnificent to watch.

He showed excellent flashes of pace and skill throughout and if the players around him had brought their A-game with them today, then he could’ve racked up several assists.

Jack O’Connell the next Harry Maguire?

The 24-year-old Liverpool born centre-back played a blinder this afternoon, so much so that he drew comparisons with a former Blades centre-back Harry Maguire.

O’Connell was solid as a rock during today’s game as he made several key tackles and interceptions, but he was unable to withstand the pressure the Swans piled on in the latter stages of the game.

This probably won’t put off Brighton who have been in hot pursuit of the defender throughout the summer, however, Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder insists he won’t budge on letting him go.

Woodburn needs more time to prove himself

The Liverpool wonderkid arrived at Bramall Lane to much fanfare earlier this week when he was allowed to go to the club on a season-long loan by Jurgen Klopp.

The 18-year-old Wales international has scored one goal in 11 appearances for the Reds since making his first-team debut in November 2016. However, he was only afforded 20 minutes of game time today and he was unable to make an impact as the Blades were mostly on the back-foot in the home stretch of the game.

The post Five things we learned as Graham Potter wins his first game in English football appeared first on Squawka News.

From Squawka NewsSquawka News https://ift.tt/2OHqWmJ