Swansea V Newcastle at Liberty Stadium : Match Preview

06 April 2012 14:22
Swansea manager Brendan Rodgers has no fresh injury concerns ahead of the Barclays Premier League clash with Newcastle at the Liberty Stadium.

Rodgers may choose to freshen up his side as they face the first of three games in eight days, with winger Nathan Dyer and defender Steven Caulker in contention to return to the starting line-up.

Midfielder Kemy Agustien has already been ruled out for the rest of the season after undergoing ankle surgery. Dyer is desperate to be back in manager Brendan Rodgers' starting XI after his three-match ban for the red card he received in the win at Wigan. And the former Southampton wide man admits it was difficult to have to sit on the sidelines as Swansea picked up wins over Manchester City and Fulham, before losing to Everton, in his absence.

"I have to work as hard as I can to try and get back in the team and hopefully I have done enough," he said. "It has been tough watching the games and not being involved but we have been doing well, we had two wins out of those three games and I have been proud of the boys and how they've been playing and it has been really good. "Newcastle are challenging for Europe so it is a tough game, but we are set and ready to go. We are disappointed after the defeat to Spurs the other day but we are looking forward to it and hopefully we can get the three points back."

Newcastle manager Alan Pardew is unlikely to make many changes following his side's 2-0 win over Liverpool last Sunday. Defender James Tavernier could be in contention after he was recalled from npower League One side MK Dons in a bid to bolster the defence in the absence of Fabricio Coloccini (hamstring) and Steven Taylor (Achilles). United approach the game on a three-game winning run while Swansea have lost their last two league games against Tottenham and Everton. Pardew believes his side's recent results will help to level the playing field in what he expects to be a tough trip.

"We've managed to beat teams who are on their game and that's very important," he said. "We've had a couple of upsets here and there in a positive way and upsets in a negative way, but what we have been is consistent. "It's a very competitive league. We've been competitive every game. "You play teams in tides really. Sometimes the tide is in and sometimes the tide is out. "Swansea have lost a couple and their tide is out a little bit and we're very much in and that will even that fixture up as Swansea away is a very difficult game."

Swansea V Newcastle - view commentary, squad, and statictics of the game live.

Source: PA