MX23RW : Friday, December 18 01:23:27| >> :120:19280:19280:

Preview: Swansea City vs. Bournemouth - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Tuesday's Championship clash between Swansea City and Bournemouth, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Swansea City and Bournemouth square off at the Liberty Stadium with just one point separating the teams in the Championship standings.

Both clubs have won three of their last five fixtures, results which have kept the teams in the top four of the table.


Match preview

Bournemouth manager Jason Tindall pictured on November 7, 2020© Reuters

After their failure to defeat Rotherham United and Preston North End, Bournemouth boss Jason Tindall would have had concerns ahead of a trip to an improving Barnsley outfit.

However, the Cherries produced arguably their performance of the season at Oakwell, running out convincing 4-0 victors to keep their place in the top two.

Despite their lofty league position, few expected such a ruthless showing against the Tykes, particularly one which was accompanied with a clean sheet after previously shipping five goals in 180 minutes.

Tindall will acknowledge that his players cannot afford to take their foot off the gas, and a trip to face an efficient Swansea side is the ideal fixture to maintain the focus of the group.

Dominic Solanke, criticised for much of his time at the Vitality Stadium, has contributed four goals from his last five appearances for the Cherries.

Swansea City frontman Andre Ayew has scored at a similar rate, his seventh of the season coming in the 2-0 win against Luton Town on Saturday.

Steve Cooper will be far from happy that the likes of Jamal Lowe, Viktor Gyokeres and Liam Cullen are all failing to provide the necessary support for the Ghana international, with just two strikes coming from the trio since the beginning of September.

Nevertheless, after registering an eighth clean sheet in 16 games, the Swans remain with the best defensive record in the second tier.

With rivals Cardiff City to follow at the weekend, Cooper and his players will only retain that standing if they are able to raise their game for a tough double-header over the coming week.

Swansea City Championship form: LWDWLW

Bournemouth Championship form: WWWDLW


Team News

Swansea City manager Steve Cooper pictured on November 3, 2020© Reuters

Despite handing an opportunity to Cullen at the weekend, Cooper could recall the more experienced Lowe to the Swansea attack.

Marc Guehi will be assessed after suffering a head injury against the Hatters, but Ryan Bennett remains absent with a hamstring injury.

The extra day of recovery could tempt Tindall into naming the same Bournemouth XI for this contest.

However, Junior Stanislas may receive a recall after not being required against Barnsley, while Dan Gosling is an alternative in midfield.

Swansea City possible starting lineup:
Woodman; Naughton, Cabango, Guehi; Roberts, Smith, Grimes, Bidwell; Dhanda; Ayew, Lowe

Bournemouth possible starting lineup:
Begovic; Mepham, Cook, Kelly; Smith, Billing, Cook, Brooks, Rico; Surridge, Solanke


SM words green background

We say: Swansea City 1-2 Bournemouth

In a contest between two evenly-matched teams, do not expect many goals in South Wales. Whoever does prevail is likely to do so by a narrow margin, and we are backing Bournemouth to build on the performance which they produced at Oakwell on Friday evening.


Top betting tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting a double chance bet on a home win or an away win in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Home/Away:data


ID:425342:cQx

Who will win Tuesday's Championship clash between Swansea and Bournemouth?

Swansea City
33.5%
Draw
26.7%
Bournemouth
39.9%
281
Share this article now:
Did you know...?
Connor Roberts celebrates scoring for Swansea City against Luton Town in the Championship on December 5, 2020
Read Next:
Steve Cooper lauds Connor Roberts as Swansea ease past Luton
>
Latest Sports Video
Sports Mole Logo
Enter your email address to subscribe to Sports Mole's free match previews newsletter! Updates are sent twice a week.

rhs 2.0
Todays Game Header Right
Tables
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Norwich CityNorwich1912432718940
2Bournemouth19107235161937
3Swansea CitySwansea199642112933
4Reading1910362923633
5Brentford1988328171132
6Watford188732213931
7Middlesbrough188642013730
8Stoke CityStoke198652420430
9Bristol City199372020030
10Cardiff CityCardiff198562618829
11Blackburn RoversBlackburn1984734231128
12Barnsley198472324-128
13Luton TownLuton197571721-426
14Huddersfield TownHuddersfield197482227-525
15Millwall195951617-124
16Preston North EndPreston1972102630-423
17Birmingham CityBirmingham195771619-322
18Coventry CityCoventry195772027-722
19Queens Park RangersQPR194781826-819
20Rotherham UnitedRotherham1944111827-916
21Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest1944111324-1116
22Derby CountyDerby193791022-1216
23Wycombe WanderersWycombe1925121128-1711
24Sheffield WednesdaySheff Weds1936101021-119

Subscribe to our Newsletter


Transfer Talk Daily
Match previews - twice weekly
Morning Briefing (7am UTC)
Ultra close-up image of Kevin De Bruyne [NOT FOR USE IN ARTICLES]Get the latest transfer news, match previews and news direct to your inbox!