How Swansea City should approach Russell Martin temptation after Alan Sheehan sack news | OneFootball

Swansea City must resist the urge to appoint Russell Martin for a second time

Alan Sheehan's brief stay as Swansea City's permanent manager came to an abrupt end on Tuesday afternoon when he was relieved of his duties after a poor run of form.

Expectations had been high after Sheehan oversaw an excellent end to the 2024/25 campaign on an interim basis, but the Irishman was unable to replicate that run of form this season, despite being backed heavily in the transfer market.

This means that Swansea are on the lookout for a new manager just three months into the campaign, and whoever takes the reins at the Swansea.com Stadium will be expected to move the club up the Championship table in the coming weeks.

The Swans have already been linked with a move for Hammarby boss Kim Hellberg, while former managers Brendan Rodgers and Russell Martin will inevitably be linked with a return to SA1 after departing Old Firm duo Celtic and Rangers respectively.

Rodgers is likely out-of-reach given his achievements since leaving South Wales in 2012, and while Martin could be in reach, Swansea should avoid appointing the ex-Rangers boss at all costs.

Swansea City should move on from Russell Martin and make a fresh appointment

To say that Martin's stock has dwindled over the course of the last 12 months would be an understatement.

Of course, he was always up against it in the Premier League with Southampton, but his Saints side badly struggled in the top-flight, and it was no surprise when he was put out of his misery last December with his side rock bottom of the league.

Things continued to get worse at Rangers too, and Martin was sacked by the Scottish club in October after just one win in seven Scottish Premiership games, a completely unacceptable win rate for a club like Rangers.

Martin was Rangers' shortest-serving permanent boss in their 153-year history, and it looks highly unlikely he'll get another top job anytime soon, so a return to the Championship looks feasible.

The former Scotland international is adored by sections of the Jack Army and could well welcome a return to SA1, especially with new owners in place from his time at the club, and while many supporters would love Martin to return, Swansea must move on.

There's no doubting that when his football works his sides can look unstoppable on their day, but Martin's football doesn't work often enough, as Swansea found out during his two-year spell as boss.

When it clicked, Swansea were excellent, but when it didn't they were too easy to beat, conceded far too many goals and looked dreadful at the back.

The 2022/23 season was a perfect example of that. Swansea finished just three points off the play-offs despite an awful run of form which saw them win three league games from 23 games in the middle of the season, a statistic that is often forgotten by supporters.

Martin did a decent job in difficult circumstances at Swansea, particularly in his second season, and the "double double" over bitter rivals Cardiff City will never be forgotten, but it's time for the club to move on and look towards the future.

Swansea City need a manager who will unite the fanbase

Swansea's fanbase has been divided in recent years, with different sections of the fanbase wanting different things.

The last time Swansea had a manager that the whole fanbase was truly behind was probably Graham Potter, with the likes of Steve Cooper, Michael Duff and Alan Sheehan unable to win over supporters who wanted to see Swansea play attacking, possession football, and Martin and Luke Williams unable to win over supporters who wanted the Swans to be tougher to beat and more direct.

Reappointing Martin would only divide the fanbase even further, and that's why it's important that Swansea bring in a fresh face.

Someone with no previous ties to the club, like the aforementioned Hellberg or Michael Carrick, could well unite the fanbase, and it's crucial that the club's new owners get this appointment right.

Swansea have discovered some talented managers in the past, with the likes of Roberto Martinez, Brendan Rodgers and Steve Cooper all moving on to bigger and better things after leaving the club, and it's important that the hierarchy at the Swansea.com Stadium learn from the mistakes of previous regimes after appointing Duff, Williams and Sheehan in the past two years or so.

With ambitious owners who have shown they're not afraid to spend money in the transfer market, the Swansea job could well be a more attractive prospect for managers than it has been in recent years and Swansea cannot afford to get another managerial appointment wrong.