Back in February 1996, a certain Welsh club was going through an almighty rough patch in the old Second Division. Then-chairman Michael Thompson had appointed a manager called Kevin Cullis – whose management experience amounted to a position as a youth coach at an obscure non-league club.
Cullis’ time as manager lasted a mere 135 minutes. During the half-time break of his second game in charge – a 4 – 0 defeat to Blackpool – the club’s senior players ushered him out of the dressing room and delivered their own team talk as they were not deceived by his lack of knowledge and experience.
Worse was to come as Swansea would spend eight of the next nine years in the fourth tier.
But almost exactly 17 years after Cullis’ swift dismissal (ironically he would be jailed for fraud and deception in unrelated circumstances seven years later), that very same club was pinching itself as Swansea City thrashed Bradford City to claim the League Cup – their first major trophy in a century of existence.
Despite the fact that the Swans have a wage cap of €40,000 - performance bonuses aside - and have a record transfer fee of less than €7 million, they have not looked out of their depth at Premier League level.
Long-term ambitions
Ninth in the Premier League, they look capable of securing a top half finish on current form. But in the long-term how high can they set their ambitions?
Already there is talk of their manager Michael Laudrup being snapped up by Real Madrid after taking the club forward in fantastic fashion.
So far managerial changes have not affected the club to a great degree thanks to the vision and philosophy of chairman Huw Jenkins and the Supporters’ Trust.
Roberto Martinez, Paulo Sousa and Brendan Rodgers have arrived, conquered and moved on without halting the progress made at the Liberty Stadium.
Allied to strong scouting networks, the departures of key players like Scott Sinclair, Joe Allen and Danny Graham have been offset by astute signings like Michu, Pablo Hernandez and Jonathan De Guzman.
The next logical step would be an assault on the Top Six next season, but without major investment it is difficult to see Swansea making that step forward.
With the way the club is run, safeguarding the status quo – consolidation and cup runs – may be the mantra for the future so long as the decision-making at boardroom level remains as high calibre as it has been during the past decade.
