Monk hails defensive duo

14th June

Garry Monk has hailed the impact of fellow defensive pair Chico Flores and Ben Davies in their debut seasons at Swansea City.
Chico arrived in SA1 last summer following a £2.5million move from Genoa while youngster Davies was handed his opportunity following Neil Taylor's ankle injury just four games into the campaign.
Spanish centre-back Chico settled quickly into life at the Swans, with his charisma and performances meaning he instantly became a fans favourite at the Liberty.
Davies' development was among the success stories of the season - the Neath-born left-back having adapted from a player with no senior football experience to becoming a regular Barclays Premier League starter following Taylor's setback.
And Monk, who played alongside the two during the season, has highlighted the duo's fantastic start to life at Swansea City.
"Chico has done fantastically well. He is a very good footballer," he said.
"Technically he is very good, and he has a different dimension to his game which he has brought into the Premier League. That can be very hard in your first season at a new club and league, but he has adapted very well.
"At the start of the season maybe he was a little rash and wild in certain games, but he controlled that and went on to flourish.
"Ben also flourished. He was my Player of the Season. To come from barely playing reserve football last season to being a Premier League regular is an unbelievable story.
"He went from having no experience of senior football whatsoever to coming up against players like Walcott, Valencia and Lennon. But he did very well against them, which is a credit to him.
"He was thrown in at the deep end, but he has taken his opportunity.
"In pre-season in America, he showed the level of performance he is capable of.
"He is a clever lad. He doesn't dismiss things, he is willing to learn. That, along with his strong left-foot and his work-rate up and down the flank, has allowed him to adapt well.
"He has a very bright future in the game."
Garry Monk features on the club's 2012-13 review DVD entitled "The Golden Year", which will be in stock very soon via the Club Shop and online.
The two-disc DVD has four hours of special content, with the story of the season, exclusive interviews with the management and squad, highlights of every league and cup game, along with extra footage all part of the package.