Swansea City forward Joel Piroe has been a revelation since his arrival from Eredivisie side PSV in the summer.

He was given the daunting task of filling the void Andre Ayew and Jamal Lowe left when they departed the club, with the former leaving on the expiration of his contract in the summer and Jamal Lowe following not too long after as he signed for promotion favourites AFC Bournemouth on deadline day back in August.

The duo scored 31 Championship goals between them last season under Steve Cooper, with their attacking prowess playing a huge part in guiding the Swans to their second consecutive top-six finish.

 

 

Arriving in Wales for his maiden playing spell in the UK, he had to endure a managerial change as Cooper left the club and was replaced by Russell Martin at the start of August, with the two managers' contrasting styles providing the first tough test of the 22-year-old's time at the second-tier side.

This is an exam he passed with flying colours, scoring four goals in his opening five competitive appearances for Martin's men and this helped to set the tone for his entire campaign so far, scoring a magnificent 11 goals in 20 displays this term, also recording four assists and building a formidable relationship with Jamie Paterson.

Michael Obafemi was brought in to support Piroe as Lowe's replacement at the end of August, with Martin claiming the former Southampton man would be a better fit than the latter.

However, Obafemi's time at the Swansea.com Stadium hasn't gone to plan thus far despite managing to open his account for his new side, making just seven appearances so far this season, starting just once and being left out of the matchday squad on numerous occasions including the last two games.

The Swans' manager spoke out on the Republic of Ireland international last week, citing his conditioning as the main reason why he's currently struggling to adapt to life in Wales.

There's still plenty of time for the 21-year-old to turn things around, because he's only young and did sign a three-year contract on his arrival, after all.

Despite this, it may come to the point where the club may want to ship him out on loan if he fails to make a real impact in the first team, potentially as soon as January if his current situation doesn't improve.

Some may think a temporary move in the winter window is unrealistic, but the forward may need a loan move away from the club to regain his confidence, potentially benefitting the second-tier side in the long term.

Although Morgan Whittaker can fill in as a striker, even scoring a hat-trick in the Carabao Cup earlier this season, Liam Cullen is the only other orthodox centre-forward option.

The latter failed to score in his 12 league appearances in 2021/22 so far, potentially leaving Swansea with a real problem if Piroe sustains an injury that keeps him out for an extended period of time.

A lot depends on whether Obafemi can kickstart his career at the club, but the Championship outfit may find they need a striker during the January window to maintain the attacking firepower needed to sustain a push for the top six.

Paterson has shown he can chip in regularly, with Olivier Ntcham also proving to be a real thorn in the oppositions' side. But their lack of threatening centre-forward options at this stage is arguably preventing them from switching things up and playing two up top.

Martin may believe in his current formation and rightly so, because the 3-4-2-1 system is one that suits them, but switching to two up top at times can help them to retain their unpredictability and provide a real threat when they need to rescue a draw or find a late winner.

This addition of a forward could help to do that and/or send one of Obafemi, Whittaker or Cullen out on loan, so this is definitely a position they need to assess as the winter window approaches.