Swansea City Predicted Lineup vs Cardiff City for March 16

After falling to a 2-0 defeat at the Cardiff City stadium in the reverse league fixture in September, Swansea City must not lose on Saturday to avoid a first-ever league double defeat to their South Wales rivals, in a match that midfielder Jamie Patterson described as a massive game. This is the Swans predicted lineup.

South Wales Derby: Swansea City Predicted Lineup Against Cardiff City

Next up: The South Wales derby 🦢🔜 pic.twitter.com/Zlr4NK1yXf

— Swansea City AFC (@SwansOfficial) March 12, 2024

How Swansea City Have Lined-up Recently

Luke Williams is starting to find his preferred Swansea lineup, making only small tweaks to his starting team in recent weeks. In the Swans’ last three starting lineups, eight players have featured consecutively. One of those players is the ever-present Matt Grimes. The midfielder is one of only two outfield players in the Championship to have played every league minute for their club this season, the other being Watford centre-back Wesley Hoedt. On Saturday, it will have been 348 days since Grimes last missed a match.

Carl Rushworth has also played every minute of the league campaign. The Brighton loanee goalkeeper is the youngest player in the league to have done this at just 22 years old.

Williams has opted for the youthful centre-back partnership of Nathan Wood-Gordon and Ben Cabango in recent fixtures. Cardiff-born Cabango has recently been selected in the Wales squad for their upcoming EURO 2024 play-offs, as has Swansea striker Liam Cullen.

January signings Ronald and Przemysław Płacheta have occupied the wings, with Jamie Paterson playing as the number ten. Paterson has the third most league starts in the Swansea squad this season, and made his 100th club appearance in last Saturday’s 1-0 defeat to Bristol City.

Another favourite of Williams, Josh Tymon has started every match under his new manager. The left-back has registered three assists in that period and is one of his team’s most effective chance-creators. Tymon is a strong contender for ‘signing of the season’ after his transfer from Stoke City in the summer.

Swansea Recent Form and Tactics

The coach favoured lining up with three centre-backs during his time as manager of Notts County, but since joining the Swans in January, the manager has opted for four defenders in all of his EFL Championship fixtures so far. Williams seems to have settled for a 4-2-3-1 formation, lining his team up in the formation in eight consecutive league matches.

After consecutive 2-1 victories over Sunderland and Blackburn Rovers, Swansea have stuttered in their last two, with a 1-1 draw to Watford and a 1-0 defeat to Bristol City. Full-time at Ashton Gate Stadium meant it was the first time Swansea failed to score in their last five fixtures.

Despite dominating with 72% possession, City disappointed in front of goal, finishing the match with zero shots on target. Much the same could be said for the previous fixture too, they dominated possession, but missed several golden opportunities to score, only scoring through a comical Ryan Andrews own goal.

Speaking after the defeat in Bristol Williams said: “We managed to control the game with the ball and we need to use that more to create openings.

“I think the few chances we did have, we weren’t clinical enough.”

Swansea’s bitter rivals Cardiff are in far better form. The team from the Welsh capital are on a four-match winning streak, with their latest victory being a dramatic turnaround in stoppage time against high-flying Ipswich Town.

Swansea Injuries and Absences

The Swans have confirmed long-term absentees Josh Ginnelly and Liam Walsh are unavailable. Newcastle loanee Harrison Ashby is also a doubt.

After missing several games due to injury, Josh Key played 12 minutes off the bench in the Swans’ last outing. It is unconfirmed whether the right-back is fit enough to start, but he will likely make another appearance off the bench.