Football League World
·7 novembre 2024
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·7 novembre 2024
Florian Bianchini is beginning to find his feet at Swansea City after a slow start
Swansea City have found their goalscoring touch in recent games, and one man in particular can be pleased with his efforts in their mini-resurgence.
Florian Bianchini joined Swansea from Ligue 2 side Bastia in the summer, signing a four-year deal with the club, but it's fair to say it's taken him a little while to get up to speed.
The 23-year-old was an unknown quantity to supporters when he arrived, and his lack of impact during the early weeks of the season had some people questioning whether he was good enough to play at Championship level.
However, a positional switch which has seen him used through the middle instead of on the wing has brought better performances, and it looks as if Bianchini could be a real asset for Swansea this season.
Swansea paid a reported fee of around £2million to sign the Frenchman from Bastia, a considerable fee given the fact he'd never played at a higher level than Ligue 2 where his goal contributions weren't outstanding, but a four-year deal suggested that Luke Williams and co had seen something they liked.
Having joined towards the end of August, it put the 23-year-old on the backfoot in terms of fitness and sharpness as he missed pre-season, so it was perhaps understandable that it took him a while to get up to speed.
Bianchini has still only started one league game for Swansea, a defeat to Blackburn, so there's still plenty of growth to come from him, but the last couple of weeks will have helped convince the Jack Army that he isn't a dud.
He was used through the middle as a striker against Millwall, and Swansea saw a different side to him as he used his pace to make some decent runs behind the defence and came close to scoring his first goal for the club but was denied by Lukas Jensen.
However, he wasn't to be denied the following week against Oxford United, and a clever run in behind saw Goncalo Franco find him with a through ball before a lovely first-time finish beat Jamie Cumming in the Yellows' goal.
It was further proof that he could make an impact in the Championship this season, and that he could cause sides a problem with his runs in behind.
He came off the bench again in Swansea's 1-0 win over Watford, and while he didn't see much of the ball as his side looked to hold on to their lead, he didn't stop running, closing down Watford defenders, putting pressure on them and forcing them to play.
If Williams wants someone to lead the line and press, Bianchini could well be his man, and he looks more athletic than Swansea's other striker options.
After a tough start, Bianchini is starting to show what he can offer Swansea, and he's only going to get better with more Championship experience under his belt.
The likes of Lawrence Vigouroux, Jisung Eom and Goncalo Franco have impressed since they first arrived, but others are starting to get up to speed and show their worth too.
Bianchini, Zan Vipotnik and Myles Peart-Harris are all starting to find their feet and have been amongst the goals in recent games after a slow start, and you feel as if it won't be too long until Swansea reliquish the unwanted title of being the division's lowest goalscorers.
It was always going to be difficult for Bianchini to make an impact straight away, especially when you consider he joined a couple of games into the season, and while he's still only started one league game, it won't be too long until he adds to that tally.
By no means is Bianchini the finished article yet, and he's still got a long way to go, but signs in recent games suggest that Swansea will soon reap the rewards of his £2million summer move.