Swansea City manager, http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Alan-c4244 Tate in his side’s previous game against Aston Villa and feels that the English International can solve their current defensive problems.
The 30-year old made only his second start in the Premier League on Saturday, after getting a nod from his manager for a place in the starting line-up.
The Swans have recently been hit by a number of setbacks in the defence. They lost the services of left-back, Neil Taylor, for the entire season due to an ankle injury, while http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Kyle-Bartley-c21555 has also been ruled out for up to three months due to an injury.
Also, the Swans recent acquisition, Chico Flores, is currently serving a three match suspension, for his illegitimate challenge on Sunderland’s http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Louis-Saha-c22459.
The absence of some of the key players from the squad forced Laudrup to turn to the experienced Tate, who has represented the club at all levels en route to their ascent from the League Two to the top division.
After witnessing his performance against the Villans, the manager was confident that his team will see out their current defensive crisis without much trouble.
He praised the English International for stepping up to the plate, and feels that his lively personality will serve to further lift the morale of the unit.
“It was only his (Tate) second start in the Premier League, but he has a lot of experience even if it is not in the Premier League,” he told the reporters in an interview.
“He knows exactly what he can and can’t do and he talks a lot and is very good at that, helping other players, and that’s very important for the team.”
Tate missed out the entire 2011/12 campaign due to a broken leg, but is set to feature more this season.
The defender was himself, pleased with his show at Villa Park despite ending up on the losing side, and switched his focus now on his next fixture.
“I played well, I was happy with how it went for me and I’m already looking forward to the next game,” he said.
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