Alan Sheehan | We have some solid foundations to build on

Alan Sheehan believes Swansea City’s strong end to the 2024-25 season has put foundations in place to improve during the upcoming 2025-26 campaign.

The Swans took 24 points from the final 13 games of the season under Sheehan, who was last week appointed head coach on a three-year contract.

Seventeen of those came in the last eighth Championship fixtures, making Swansea one of the division’s form sides during the final run-in.

That sequence was characterised by aggressive pressing, and positive attacking intent in transition.

And Sheehan feels there is a solid base to build on as he looks ahead to his first full campaign at the helm.

“I think we definitely have some good foundations to build on,” he said. 

“There have been a lot of really pleasing things in the run we have put together over the final part of the season.

“We came back from the final international break and we really found some momentum and confidence.

“To go on that run was incredibly special, because it is very difficult to do that at Championship level.

“We want to keep building that momentum and confidence in the group, to create a belief that we are capable of doing something. 

“I think we have done that in an unforgiving league, with five wins in a row, we have got a top-half finish and I feel that is very progressive.”

Sheehan will have the opportunity to lead the Swans through a full pre-season, and already knows he will have Melker Widell and Zeidane Inoussa joining his squad when the players report for duty.

And he views that training block as being crucial as he looks to bed in the additions to his squad.

“A good pre-season will be key for us, we are going to have new faces in,” he said. 

“There will also be people leaving the building, so we will have something of a new group.

“I have had good conversations already with (director of football) Richard (Montague), (global head of analytics and recruitment) Adam (Worth), (head of scouting) James (Morgan-Snowley), and they are really determined to put a really competitive Championship team in place based on what we want to do.

“We want to be a very competitive team in the Championship, which we have been for a while.

“We want to build on that and make it better, while tweaking and making little improvements all over the place.”