Russell Martin challenges Swansea City to finish season strongly

Head coach Russell Martin has challenged his Swansea City side to finish strongly as they head into the final dozen games of the season.

The Swans currently sit 16th in the Championship, 20 points above the relegation places and 13 points below the play-offs, but the Swans’ boss is determined that his side should finish the campaign well and reward the patience of supporters.

It's been a transitional season at the club and, while Martin pulled no punches in acknowledging he’d like to be higher up in the league, he believes there are clear signs of positive progress.

“I want to be higher in the league, but I feel like the wheels are turning and we’re going in the right direction,” said Martin.

“When I break it down and look at the identity of the team and how much the players have bought into it, I think [the identity] is really clear.

“Things still needs to improve,  but out of possession the boys hunt the ball back, and in possession the boys try to have as much control as possible. I feel like we’ve added more of a threat in recent weeks. The level of performance at times has been fantastic.

“It’s really important that we finish strongly, not just for this season, but for next season.

“We’ve put a lot of work in trying to do things a certain way, and we want to keep going with that We’ll keep developing and working on who we want to be as a team. We want to finish as strongly as possible and reward and justify the patience that people and fans have had with us. 

“We want to give the fans a team they feel connected to and can be proud of at the end of the season.

“The support has been incredible: the amount of supporters travelling to Blackpool tells you everything you need to know about this club and the support it gets.”