Michael Laudrup tells Swansea City players they are going back to school
MICHAEL Laudrup says Swansea City must go back to school this spring as they aim to finish the season with a flourish.
Swansea have little to play for having reached 40 points more than a fortnight ago — but Laudrup insists that is no excuse for easing off.
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Laudrup
And he has told his players they must keep on performing right through until mid-May if they harbour any hopes of joining one of the top clubs in the future.
"This last part of the season has to be seen as an education for the club, for the team and for individuals to keep pushing on," said the Swansea manager.
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"We have shown at times this season that we are a mature team, and we have to do that again between now and the end of the season.
"I really hope that one day some of my players will go and play for a top, top club, and when you do that, you need to win every game.
"You can win five games in a row but you lose the sixth and it's a problem, you lose the seventh and it's a drama.
"You have to keep on winning, and I can say that is part of our education now.
"It's not often that a club of our size can have a trophy and 40 points with ten games to go, but you still have to carry on."
Swansea have shown few signs of any dip in motivation since their Wembley success over Bradford sealed European qualification for next season.
They fought hard for the victory over Newcastle which took them to the 40-point mark and, while they have lost back-to-back games, there has been no shortage of effort.
And Laudrup has seen enough from this Swansea side already this season to convince him that they will do the hard yards from here on in.
"We have shown in the past three games that the attitude is very good," he added.
"And we showed how mature we are when, after winning at Chelsea in the semi-final, we went to Everton and got a 0-0.
"That was a very difficult game — look what happened to Manchester City over the weekend — and it was a game I thought we would lose without a doubt.
"But we produced one of the greatest performances of our season in the circumstances.
"Then after the second semi-final we went to Sunderland and drew but we dominated the game. That tells me the team is already quite mature, but the next couple of months can be part of our education."
Swansea are ninth in the table after losing to Arsenal last Saturday, but are four points clear of Fulham in tenth even after their shock win at Spurs.
And Laudrup remains confident his team will end the season in the top half of the top division.
"I am still convinced we will win games and that we will more or less arrive at 50 points, which would be fair to ourselves and the campaign we have had," he said.
Arsenal, meantime, have been linked with a summer move for Swansea goalkeeper Michel Vorm.
The Gunners are also thought to be interested in Ashley Williams.
Gareth Vincent
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