Luke Williams | We need to be brave as we build

Head coach Luke Williams wants Swansea City to show bravery when they take on Birmingham City in his first Championship game at the helm this afternoon (3pm).

Williams and the coaching staff have had a full week on the training ground with the players ahead of the trip to St Andrew’s, but the Swans boss knows it is going to take time to implement everything being asked of the squad.

But he still wants to see his side show bravery with and without the ball, and start to put into practice the work they have been putting in as they seek to deliver a team to excite supporters.

“I think you have to be brave whatever style you play. I don’t think there is a way of playing football where you go on the pitch, be a coward and win,” said Williams.

“Some players will feel they need to be brave, but some of these players will find this easier because it’s more natural to them and they enjoy it.

“I hope more players find it comfortable than not.

“We’re trying to get a lot of information in to the players as quickly as possible, but I can’t complain about the commitment.

“I think the proof will be in performances. In the coming weeks, we will start to see how accurate the work on the training ground is.

“I think we would all like to get to know the players, and have games that don’t carry three points to evaluate what we’re doing before competitive games kick off, but that’s not the situation.

“This group can play how we want to play. When I was here before we managed to get the performance level quite high, quite quickly. We need to get people up to speed again.

“We’re trying to get everyone to understand the team structure, then each player will have their unique qualities which they can bring to it.

“I know what we need to do to be able to manage the performances. I need to start my process and help the players understand that.”

Birmingham also have a new boss in the dugout following their appointment of Tony Mowbray earlier in the week, and Williams admits it feels like a case of déjà vu given the Yorkshireman was the first opponent he faced during his first stint with the Swans.

“I’m almost fed up with this because when I was first here my first game with Swansea was Blackburn away and Tony Mowbray was their manager,” said Williams with a smile.

“Now we go to Birmingham, away from home, and Tony is their manager. I don’t know if he’s done it on purpose.

“I have been up against Tony a number of times, and I think everyone knows he is top and he knows exactly what he is doing.

“We are in similar situations. We will both be trying to make an impact on our teams as quickly as we can.

“We have to go up against each other again and I look forward to that, I look forward to seeing him because he is a great guy."