"Let's see what happens" - Alan Sheehan drops Swansea City job hint after Blackburn win | OneFootball

The interim Swans boss hasn’t ruled himself out of the running to succeed Luke Williams

Swansea City achieved a triumphant 3-0 win over Blackburn Rovers under interim boss Alan Sheehan on Saturday.

The 38-year-old was taking charge of his first game since former manager Luke Williams departed after a long run of poor results.

It was only the Swans' second win in their last 10 league outings, a run that has seen them record seven losses, beginning with a 4-0 mauling by fellow bottom-half side Portsmouth on New Year’s Day.

The result, therefore, against a play-off chasing Blackburn, was a notable occasion for fans, the strong start predictably leading to questions over whether Sheehan might throw his hat into the ring for the permanent job.

Sheehan reluctant to rule out permanent job

The temporary boss was keen not to get too carried away with the result, as he revealed that he’s not even sure if he’ll be in the dugout for Swansea’s game against Preston North End at the start of next month.

"I've no idea," Sheehan said, as quoted by WalesOnline. "The club was in a difficult position and I was asked to step up, so that's my duty and I have to do that. All concentration today was going into just not letting the people working at the football club and the fans getting into a dangerous position.

“That's all I was thinking. All my energy has gone into today and then we'll see what happens.”

A follow-up question then quizzed the Irishman on whether the win at least helped him to build a case for taking the full-time role.

He replied: “You see, building a case, you'd understand that I'd want it. You would think that.

"Let's see what happens. There's a lot of stuff happening at the football club, and if we concentrate on me, on any point, I don't really like that. Let's concentrate on giving our positive energy to the players and let all that other stuff take care of itself.”

Interim Swans boss under no illusion how hard Championship is

Sheehan revealed that he was still up at four in the morning the day before the Blackburn game, pulling together his final tactical preparations for what some might see as his audition for the main gig.

Given the resounding victory, it paid off, but the temporary coach is clear that it will take a lot more to maintain those levels over a longer period.

"My job was to get the team ready against a top six team, so I analysed them,” he continued.

“I watched a number of their games. I was up late last night, and now we've got the win. That's what it takes to win in the Championship. It's hard.

"But to do it consistently is even harder."

There could be a smart deal to be done for Swansea

It’s clear that Sheehan wants to get into management, given his answers and the commitment he’s shown to getting the result against Rovers, but he’s yet to have a full-time role in the hot seat.

Mid-season manager changes are difficult, unexpected and, quite often, rushed.

The Swans are currently in 16th, ten points clear of the drop zone, with 12 games left to play. While they’re far from guaranteed safety, their chances of survival look comfortable.

It may therefore be the smartest — and most financially responsible — move to give Sheehan some clarity over his immediate future, extend his interim terms to the end of the season, and then take stock over the summer.

Sheehan seems more than up for proving himself; it would provide some immediate stability and give the club a lot more breathing space to assess their options — all while acting as a trial period to see whether the Irish coach is up to the main task.