Swansea City add duo to first-team staff

Swansea City is pleased to announce the additions of Steve Rands and Lee Watkins to Steve Cooper’s first-team staff.

Rands will become the club’s new head of performance analysis. He makes the move to the Liberty Stadium having spent last season working with Frank Lampard at Derby County, after seven years with Premier League champions Manchester City working under Pep Guardiola, Manuel Pellegrini and Roberto Mancini.

Hailing From Hull, the 34-year-old earned a degree in sports coaching and performance from the University of Hull and started his career at Barnsley, working under then-Tykes boss Simon Davey during the 2007-08 campaign.

He moved on to Scunthorpe as head of performance analysis and spent three years with the Iron, with the club gaining promotion to the Championship and reaching the Football League Trophy final at Wembley during that time.

In 2011, he made the high-profile move to Manchester City to work under Mancini as performance analyst.

The Citizens secured a memorable Premier League title triumph in his first season at the Etihad Stadium, and Rands subsequently worked with Pellegrini and Guardiola, becoming lead first-team performance analyst under the latter.

City won two further league titles and three League Cups during Rands’ stint with them, before he elected to join Lampard at Pride Park having previously worked with the ex-Chelsea and England midfielder at Manchester City.

The Rams reached the play-off final but ultimately lost out on promotion to Aston Villa, with Rands now making the switch to South Wales.

In addition to Rands’ appointment, Watkins also joins the Swans as first-team physio having previously held the post of Head of Youth Medical and Sciences at Yeovil Town.