Bradley targets Swansea wins over relegation rivals

Swansea City boss Bob Bradley admits his side’s clashes with their Premier League relegation rivals over the festive period could make or break their season.

The Welsh outfit welcome fellow strugglers West Ham United and Bournemouth to the Liberty Stadium on Boxing Day and New Year’s Eve, respectively, and with only goal difference currently keeping them off the bottom of the table, those will be six-point clashes for the Swans.

Having been humbled 3-0 by Middlesbrough at the weekend, Bradley is desperate for his side to rediscover their form against the teams around them – having beaten both Sunderland and Crystal Palace in the last month.

And if they can do that, then Bradley is convinced the Swans can pull clear of the danger zone after Christmas.

“That’s the challenge – that’s the job,” he said.

“When a team has put itself in a bad spot, everybody has to stick together and fight. That’s what we’ll do.

“Up until today we have done well in the games against the teams who are right around us in the table.

“We talked about the importance of the games against Crystal Palace and Sunderland, but for the first time here we didn’t take care of business [against a direct rival].

“That’s going to be important, but now we have to look to our next two matches and try to win those. They are going to be key for us.”