New regime but some very familiar problems for Swans

A new era, but the same problems clearly still persist for Swansea City, who started life under Vitor Matos with a disappointing defeat on Tuesday night.

- TOM COLEMAN Football Writer [e-mail]

Goals from Joe Ward and Lars-Jorgen Salvesen were enough to hand Derby County all three points at a chilly Swansea.com Stadium, despite Ethan Galbraith responding with a well-taken 90th-minute strike.

Fans vented their frustrations at full-time, with the audible boos and jeers further underling the size of the task ahead for the new Portuguese coach, who's now facing up to the prospect of a potential relegation battle.

Matos admitted himself that some big improvements are needed, but insisted there were some crumbs of comfort from this latest defeat, Swansea’s fourth on the bounce.

Indeed, there were some elements that might well have hinted at some form of progress, particularly in the first half, although clearly those positives weren’t enough to change the course of yet another disappointing outing.

ONE of the most noticeable changes was Swansea's clear dominance in possession.

The Swans enjoyed an astonishing 73 per cent of the ball on the night - by far their highest number of the season.

The challenge now, of course, is to turn that foundation of possession into a team that carries some sort of threat.

But squint really hard, and you might just see some small signs of progress.

Swansea certainly looked to play through the lines a lot more, particularly in the first half, racking up a total of 58 progressive passes - their highest number so far this season.