Swansea City are keen to strengthen their squad by signing former Liverpool defender Daniel Ayala from Middlesbrough. The centre-back is a free agent after refusing to sign a short-term extension to his Middlesbrough contract when football returned from the coronavirus shutdown in June. But Swansea head coach Steve Cooper is likely to face competition from a number of clubs – including those in Ayala’s homeland of Spain – for the 29-year-old.

Steve Cooper will start a rebuilding job at Swansea City over the next few days after uncertainty over the club’s status next season was given brutal clarity by rampant Brentford. The Swans’ hopes of promotion back to the Premier League were ended with a 3-1 defeat in the second leg of their play-off semi-final – providing a 3-2 aggregate victory for the London club that sounds more anxious for the hosts than it really was. The defeat means Swansea will start a third season in the Championship since their relegation in 2018 and will receive the final and lowest instalment of their parachute payments.

Andre Ayew’s match-winning contribution to Swansea City’s narrow play-off first leg lead over Brentford illustrated his strength of character, according to head coach Steve Cooper. Ayew scored the goal that separates the teams at the hallway stage – flashing an unstoppable shot past David Raya, just minutes after the goalkeeper had saved Ayew’s penalty. In between times, Brentford had Rico Henry sent off for a reckless lunge at Connor Roberts, but it was Ayew’s ability to lift himself from his own failure that proved the decisive moment.

Rhian Brewster has been backed to leave Brentford’s much celebrated BMW on the hard shoulder today as Swansea City motor towards the Premier League. The man who has helped Brewster become fine tuned for the first leg of the club’s Championship play-off at The Liberty Stadium is Andre Ayew – a decade older than the 20-year-old Liverpool loanee. Together, Brewster and Ayew have scored 25 league goals –  not quite at the level of Said Benrahma, Bryan Mbeumo and Ollie Watkins, who have been dubbed the BMW this season with a high performance 57 Championship goals between them for the Bees.

Wayne Routledge has been praised as a “Swansea City legend” after his two goals secured the miracle at the Madejski. The praise was offered by a grateful manager Steve Cooper after the 35-year-old scored a sublime first and play-off clinching second in the 4-1 win at Reading. With Swansea chasing goals late on, it was Routledge who headed home at the far post to put them into the top six in stoppage time against Reading.

Steve Cooper hopes Conor Gallagher can finally break his Swansea goal duck as his team makes a last-gasp bid for a play-off spot.  Chelsea loanee Gallagher, 20, impressed with Charlton in the first half of the season before heading to South Wales where he has made another big impact. His creative spark is a key asset for Swansea head coach Cooper but for all his assists since joining in January, Gallagher is yet to find the back of the net in a white shirt.

Steve Cooper insists anything can happen in the Championship – but he knows the stars must align on Wednesday night or else the season will end for Swansea City. Barring a dramatic collapse from Nottingham Forest, who would have to lose their final two games by significant margins, the final play-off place is set to come down to a Welsh shoot-out between Cardiff and Swansea. Cardiff are in pole position to claim sixth spot after winning 3-1 at Middlesbrough on Saturday, but Swansea refused to throw in the towel by beating Bristol City 1-0 at home.

Steve Cooper has admitted his Swansea City teams are now relying on “sneaking” into the Championship play-offs through the stumbles of others. The Swans head coach admitted deep frustration at his team’s failure to win at Nottingham Forest on Wednesday night after they twice led before being forced to settle for a 2-2 draw. The point leaves Cooper’s side in eighth place, three points behind Cardiff City, with just two games remaining.

Swansea City may have to put their faith in the hands of back-up goalkeeper Erwin Mulder to keep their promotion hopes alive. Mulder – who has not started a game for the club for 16 months – is on stand-by to come in to the side at Nottingham Forest on Wednesday night for a match the club cannot afford to lose if they are to hold realistic hopes of making the play-offs. The Swans have a fitness doubt over Freddie Woodman, who was forced off late on in the defeat to Leeds United last Sunday with a hip injury.

Steve Cooper insists “heart and soul” will decide the Championship play-off race involving his Swansea City side and rivals Cardiff. The Swans head coach was left defeated but not demoralised by his club’s 1-0 home defeat to Leeds United on Sunday – a contest settled by former Swan Pablo Hernandez’s last-gasp winner. Cooper admitted it was a missed opportunity – his team would have gone above Cardiff and into sixth place had they held on for the draw – but thinks the outcome will not be settled by ability alone or the fact they only have a few days’ rest before facing Nottingham Forest on Wednesday.

Conor Gallagher wants to show Frank Lampard he’s ready to be Chelsea’s next cab off the rank by steering Swansea City towards the Premier League. The 20-year-old – on loan at the Liberty Stadium from Stamford Bridge – has been in impressive form lately as the Swans have moved to the cusp of the play-off spots. A point or more at home to Leeds United today would be enough to nudge the club into sixth place, above Cardiff City, and will be another opportunity for Gallagher to show Chelsea manager Lampard that he is ready for the Premier League – either for his parent club or for another 12 months in Wales.

Steve Cooper has backed Rhian Brewster to remain the man for the big occasion after he started the comeback that saw his side move to within collar-breathing distance of play-off rivals Cardiff City. On-loan Liverpool forward Brewster scored his eighth goal in 16 games since joining on loan from Liverpool in January as the Swans beat Birmingham City 3-1 at St Andrew’s. It meant back-to-back victories for Cooper’s side for the first time since December as they moved to within a point of sixth-placed Cardiff with four games remaining. The teams now have identical goal difference.