League positions will have no bearing on Stoke game, warns Steve Cooper

Steve Cooper says league positions will count for nothing when Swansea City host Stoke City at the Liberty Stadium this afternoon (3pm).

The Swans currently sit top of the Championship table having taken 21 points from their first 10 games, while the Potters are bottom and winless after a difficult couple of months.

It means the hosts will start as favourites, but Swansea only have to hark back 12 months to a defeat in SA1 to Ipswich for a reminder that such tags do not ensure points inevitably follow.

And head coach Cooper is guarding against any sort of complacency, pointing to a Potters’ squad he considers to be strong regardless of where they sit in the standings.

“It will be dangerous if we have the mentality that this will be a home win,” said Cooper.

“But we won’t have that mentality and we will not be thinking about anyone’s league position.

“We will be preparing for a team that on their day are very strong, there is no need for us to be thinking about anything else.

“They have a strong squad and whatever team they put out will be strong, so we have to focus, get the gameplan right and try to deliver at home.

“We want to be on the front foot at the home, regardless of who we play.”