"The next Martinez? Probably not" - Swansea City urged to steer clear of 33-y/o as next manager | OneFootball

The Swans are said have compiled a three-person shortlist for the vacancy in Wales

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

The search for a new Swansea City boss is underway after the news that Luke Williams left his post in charge of the Championship side earlier this week.

The Swans have won just one of their last nine league outings before the decision was made for manager and club to part ways on Monday, with a new person in the dugout required to turn fortunes around.

While the Welsh outfit are reportedly in no rush to find their next boss, a three-man shortlist is already said to have been outlined, with Rob Edwards, Des Buckingham and Ryan Mason all reportedly being eyed for the vacancy.

With that in mind, we spoke to Football League World’s resident Swans fan Jason Lawrence about the final one of those three, with Mason currently working as an assistant coach at Tottenham Hotspur.

Ryan Mason, Roberto Martinez comparison made as Swansea City eye new boss

Mason is an interesting choice for Swansea City to consider right now, with the 33-year-old yet to have a permanent job in management.

The former Hull City midfielder has been in charge of Spurs on an interim basis on two separate occasions, the most recent being in April 2023, when he oversaw the final six matches of the Premier League season following Cristian Stellini’s departure from the club.

Swansea have given managerial opportunities to young aspiring managers in the past, with Roberto Martinez being the prime example as he led the club to the League One title in the 07/08 campaign, but with results as poor as they are right now, Lawrence is tentative about going for an untried option at this point in the season.

“I can understand why Ryan Mason is being linked," Jason told FLW.

"He is clearly a well-though of coach, having retained positions under several managers at Tottenham and also being trusted with the interim job, when there was probably more experienced guys than him around. But they seemed to trust him with the reins in between managers.

“So he is an interesting one, he has-been linked before, which is probably part of the reason why he is being linked now. The other main reason is probably that Swansea have a bit of a track record of giving recently retired players a first go in management.

“Roberto Martinez, Garry Monk, and there have been others that have been linked with us, Angel Rangel, and other ex-players that are recently retired and have done their coaching badges and are looking for a way into management.

“Swansea have done that with some success in the past, obviously Martinez sticks out like a sore thumb, and is probably the man that his responsible for the Swansea way.

“But is Ryan Mason the next Martinez? Probably not.”

Swansea City urged to consider veering away from Ryan Mason option

With results as poor as they have been recently, something drastically needed to change at Swansea, and Williams’ departure will likely be the catalyst for a spot of soul-searching at the club.

The former Notts County boss had a mixed bag of results in charge in Wales, with 19 wins from his 53 Championship games in charge signalling a side destined to finish in lower mid-table, although the ill-feeling around the club made his position untenable going forward.

After showing plenty of willing to delve into the lower leagues for their previous three managerial appointments in Williams, Michael Duff and Russell Martin, it remains to be seen where the Swans head this time around, but Lawrence is sure that Mason is not the answer at this current juncture.

Jason continued: “Would he be the right fit right now? For me, definitely not.

“There is no doubt he is a very capable coach, and there is no doubt that if he wants to go on and be a number one and have a good managerial career, I am sure that is there for him7

“However, Swansea are in a bit of a hole right now; our form is dreadful, we have lost seven of the last nine and the last thing we can afford to do right at this moment is give a largely untried coach a high managerial opportunity.

“I think it would be massive gamble, I think we would be gambling with our Championship status if we gave someone of Ryan Mason’s experience level a hold of the reins right now.

“So I think it is the right job at the wrong time for him, and I think we can look elsewhere and get somebody else in with a bit more experience.”