Talking Tactics | Swansea City v Bristol City

Football stats experts WhoScored.com take a closer look at the form of Freddie Woodman, and examine why he can be a key figure in Swansea City's clash with Bristol City.

Swansea City delivered the perfect response to their 4-1 loss to Huddersfield last weekend with a 1-0 victory over lowly Coventry in midweek to get their promotion push back on track.

While results elsewhere went against them, as Watford and Brentford both won, Swansea are still just a point off second with two games in hand on those around them, so they need to keep putting the wins on the board to remain in the hunt for a automatic promotion spot.

Next up for the Swans this week is the welcome of Bristol City as they look to maintain their excellent home form. Indeed, Swansea are on a 13-match unbeaten streak at the Liberty Stadium, that the second longest in the Championship this season, and a run they'll seek to extend against the Robins.

Bristol City may have earned all three points against Middlesbrough in midweek, but that 3-1 victory ended a seven-match away losing run. It's a morale boost for the West Country outfit, however, they'll be aware of the difficulty of the challenge facing them this weekend.

Nigel Pearson's new side may have scored 18 times in 16 away matches, but Swansea boast the best defensive record in the division having conceded just 19 times in 2020/21, and just six times in 16 games at the Liberty Stadium. A key figure in their solid defensive resolve has been the performances of goalkeeper Freddie Woodman.

Another clean sheet against Coventry on Wednesday means Woodman has 17 to his name this season, that at least four more than any other Championship goalkeeper at the time of writing. The 23-year-old's solid goalkeeping displays have seen him develop a statistically calculated WhoScored.com strength of 'saving close range shots', that one of four strengths to his name.

Swansea earned a 1-0 win over Bristol City in this fixture last season and, while that was a game Woodman missed, the Swans will be looking to ensure another goalless afternoon for the visitors. With the on-loan goalkeeper impressing between the sticks, Swansea will have their sights set on another three points on home turf.

However, Swansea will be well aware they can't rock up and expect to secure all three points with ease. Famara Diedhiou ended a seven-game goalless run with a brace in Bristol City's 3-1 win over Middlesbrough in midweek in a man-of-the-match display at the Riverside.

Diedhiou has scored more league goals (eight) than any other Robins player this season, with his two goals in midweek his first and second on the road in 2020/21.

He'll be out to build upon that brace against Boro when he takes on Swansea's strong rearguard at the Liberty Stadium. With the Swans returning to winning ways, Steve Cooper will be demanding his side use that 1-0 victory over Coventry as a solid foundation to build another unbeaten run when they take on Bristol City and, with Woodman impressing, another clean sheet would only boost their chances.