Swansea City manager Luke Williams has confirmed that deadline day signing Lewis O’Brien could make his debut against Bristol City this weekend, having joined on loan from Nottingham Forest. However, Joe Allen will not be fit to feature against Liam Manning’s side.
The Robins welcome the Swans to Ashton Gate on Sunday lunchtime as they look to close the gap to the play-off places and extend their unbeaten run in the Championship to four matches, having drawn 1-1 with Oxford United last weekend.
Manning will be without both Joe Williams and Ross McCrorie who are set to serve suspensions having been sent off against Gary Rowett’s side last time out, while this weekend’s game will come too soon for Cam Pring to return. Other than that, the City head coach will have his first-team squad to choose from.
While the Reds didn’t make a single addition to their playing squad during the transfer window, Swansea added both Hannes Delcriox and O’Brien to their ranks. On top of that, Melker Widell will make the move to South Wales in the summer. Delcroix has already played twice for the Swans since arriving on loan from Burnley and Williams insists midfielder O’Brien is also in contention to feature at Ashton Gate.
“Lewis is ready to go,” the Swansea boss explained in his press conference. “So, provided we feel like we have given him enough information and training, and he feels confident, then he has a great chance of being involved.
“He is a fantastic player, he has been a top performer working with some great managers who will tell you he is the real deal. He has a strong mentality, he is a bubbly character and will give energy to the group. He is an impressive player.”
Swansea currently sit 17th in the Championship table, just seven points clear of the relegation zone with 16 games left this season. Williams’ side have failed to win any of their last seven matches in all competitions, with frustration only growing in South Wales after captain Matt Grimes completed a January move to Coventry City.
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As they look to end their torrid recent run in the Championship, they will be without Wales international Allen, who hasn’t featured since the Swans’ 3-0 defeat to Cardiff City last month, and the suspended Harry Darling who was shown a straight red card against the Bluebirds.
Although Oliver Cooper is again involved, having ended a three-month absence off of the bench against Coventry last time out, Williams insists the 25-year-old will have to be managed carefully having recovered from a stress fracture.
“We have a few little knocks, Joe Allen is going to need a bit longer which is bad news for us as he is such a great player,” explained the 44-year-old. “With Ollie, it’s about management and making sure we are careful.
“Ollie puts so much load through his body, and he is a very important player for us, so we need to be careful.”