Player Focus: Tactical Tweaks Helping Sigurdsson Return to Form
Despite their lacklustre away record, Swansea will have been confident of upsetting the odds when they travelled to Goodison Park on Sunday. Coming into the encounter, Everton had conceded the most goals at home in the Premier League and when the full time whistle blew, that record still stood. A 2-1 win for the Swans means the Toffees have conceded a whopping 22 goals on home turf this term.
Fans have now been treated to 46 goals in 12 league games at Everton this season, more than any other Premier League ground. If you want to see goals, the blue side of Merseyside is certainly the place to go. Nevertheless, Swansea went into the league meeting with Everton as underdogs. The Welsh outfit had won just one of their 10 Premier League fixtures on the road this term prior to Sunday, so to come away with all three points was nothing short of spectacular. Indeed, it was the ideal start to life at Swansea for recently-appointed head coach Francesco Guidolin.
Sky Sports’ Super Sunday panel - in particular Graeme Souness - were unconvinced of the Italian ahead of kick off, suggesting Swansea would have been better suited hiring a manager who knew the league rather than one who, despite his exploits in Italy with Udinese, was inexperienced in English football. The Scot would be left to eat his words at full time as Guidolin masterminded just Swansea's sixth Premier League win of the season.
It was a timely boost to the club, who capitalised on results from their relegation rivals going in their favour to move four points clear of the drop zone. Summer arrival Andre Ayew may have stolen the plaudits with a man of the match display, returning a rating of 8.38, but the victory at Goodison Park marked another turn in the fortunes of Gylfi Sigurdsson. Following his return to the Liberty Stadium, Sigurdsson enjoyed a commendable first full season for Swansea. 10 league assists was the joint-third best return in England’s top tier last term, which saw him gain a WhoScored rating of 7.18.
The signing of Ayew promised to bring out the best in the Iceland international. The Ghanaian is one who is always on the move and capable of finding pockets of space that a player of Sigurdsson’s creative talents could maximise. However, with Garry Monk at the helm and Ayew regularly played on the wings, the duo were unable to strike up an understanding. Despite Bafetimbi Gomis’ good start to the campaign, Sigurdsson initially struggled to make the desired impact in the final third.
Two goals and a solitary assist was synonymous with Swansea’s ongoing problems, with a 3-0 defeat to Leicester at the turn of December proving to be the straw that broke the camel's back for Monk. With Alan Curtis at the helm, though, he quickly identified a change in shape was required in order to improve fortunes. Monk was unwavering in his loyalty towards a 4-2-3-1 formation - he used the system in each of his 15 league games of the season - and while this should have benefitted a player of Sigurdsson’s qualities, the lack of tactical flexibility limited his influence.
A WhoScored rating of 6.47 from Monk’s 15 league games in charge was indeed a poor return by Sigurdsson’s standards, particularly as he thrived in a similar system last term. Yet a change by Curtis, both in the system and Sigurdsson’s starting position, has helped the 26-year-old regain some form. Of the five league goals the attacker has scored, three have come in his last four league appearances, though two of those have been penalties. Meanwhile, his WhoScored rating has risen to 7.10 in said matches, a significant increase under Curtis and Guidolin than with Monk at the helm.
Curtis and Guidolin appear settled on a 4-3-1-2 formation for now, the same system that secured back-to-back league wins over Watford and Everton this past week. Crucially, while Sigurdsson has started in the number 10 role, Ayew has been redeployed to lead the attack. The former Marseille star is capable of performing on either flank, but his performances of late show Swansea are best suited having him lead the attack. Not a conventional striker by any means, Ayew’s insistence on dropping to help the midfield leaves space for Sigurdsson to exploit as his teammate drags players out of position, presenting more goalscoring opportunities as a result.
Sigurdsson’s shots per game return has improved in his last eight league games (2.6) compared to his previous 15 (1.9), as has his number of successful dribbles per game (0.8 up from 0.3). With the extra space afforded to him courtesy of Ayew, Sigurdsson has more space in which to drive forward with the ball and test the opposition goalkeeper. Given Ayew’s clever movement, this is also bringing out the best in the creative side of Sigurdsson’s game.
An average of two key passes per game under Curtis and Guidolin is an increase on the 1.1 with Monk at the helm. Clearly, Sigurdsson is profiting from the new managerial duo, the latter of whom he needs to impress if he is to keep his place in the Swansea starting XI. His recent performances, however, suggest he is showing the necessary form required to help Swansea pull away from the relegation zone. The tactical switches made to the system and personnel are allowing Sigurdsson to flourish in the final third and if he can maintain his upturn in form, Swansea stand a much stronger chance of consolidating their Premier League place.
How important will Gylfi Sigurdsson be to Swansea in their quest to stave off relegation? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below
