Swansea January transfer dossier: Garry Monk plans life without Wilfried Bony and Ki Sung-yueng
A positive summer window which brought in players such as Gylfi Sigurdsson, Lukasz Fabianski and Jefferson Montero have led Swansea to a comfortable position in the Premier League.
Nevertheless, they now need to prepare for life without their top star Wilfried Bony, as the Ivorian, who has scored a third of their Premier League goals this season, is expected to play the Africa Cup of Nations next month - which runs from January 17 to February 8.
What they need
A full-back and a striker are Garry Monk's main priorities. The Wales club have already confirmed the signing of Portuguese star Nelson Oliveira on a six-month loan deal to cover Bony's absence during international duty.
However, Monk is still keen on both a versatile full-back who can adapt to both sides and a midfielder to cope with Ki Sung-yueng's absence, as the South Korea will also be away next month in the Asian Cup.
Who could join
Following the confirmation of Nelson Oliveira's arrival to the club, Monk's next target is a full back. In this sense they have been linked with Palermo versatile defender Ezequiel Muñoz but Monk may also now renew his interest in Tottenham's Kyle Walker.
Furthermore, Swansea are monitoring a number of midfielders to cope without Ki, including Matty Grimes, from Exeter, and Brentford's on-loan Tottenham playmaker Alex Pritchard.
Who could leave
Bony has recently committed his future to the Swans with a new long-term deal but Liverpool, Manchester City and Tottenham are reportedly likely to tempt him this January with an even more lucrative deal.
Furthermore, Gomis's future at the club is also uncertain as even though he only arrived at Swansea in the summer on a free transfer he has found game time limited during the first part of the campaign.
What the manager has said
"We have talked about having two players for every position so the levels of competitiveness are right. I won't rush anything — they have to be the right players coming in because I don't just want a stop-gap — but we do need those two or three bodies to come in."
"I have talked about a striker, and it could be that we look at a loan with a view to something longer-term. And full-back is another one. Neil Taylor is the only recognised left-back we have and he needs to be pushed. We could look for a player capable of playing on both sides — it depends, like all of them, on affordability and availability.
"And with Ki Sung-Yueng going away, midfield could be another position we look at, but it has to be the right player. If we can't get the right one, we won't do anything."
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