SWANS: Cabango back in training and Monga in contention for Wrexham visit

Ben Cabango has returned to training and Jeremy Monga is in contention as Swansea City prepare to host Wrexham on Saturday evening.

The club captain has missed the wins over Derby County and Watford with the heel injury he picked up against Sheffield United.

“Ben is back in training today. We’ll see how it goes and then let’s see. But the medical is clear,” head coach Vitor Matos said.

Monga, the 17-year-old winger signed on loan from Manchester City on deadline day, could also feature.

“He’s arrived, that deal has been done. As far as I know, yes, he is in contention. Of course, there’s always things you need to check, but as far as I know, yes,” Matos said.

“He’s a talented kid with a lot of potential. He’s really technical, really strong in one-v-ones. We needed that kind of player.

“We’re really happy we have him here. Now it’s up to us to use him at the right moments.”

Ross Stewart, Cameron Burgess and Gonçalo Franco remain sidelined, but there are otherwise no new injury concerns.

‘They probably deserve more points’

Wrexham arrive 11th, having won for the first time this season on Wednesday night, 3-0 at Millwall.

“I think Wrexham are in a good moment. I think they probably deserve more points than what they have at the moment, because they are playing well, playing consistent, quite clear in terms of ideas,” Matos said.

“We saw that last night against Millwall, which is a really hard place to go, so they put a proper performance in there. We expect a really tough game.

“They have a really good squad. On the last day of the window, or in the last two days, they made some signings, so they keep improving the squad. We have improved the squad as well, so it will be a nice game to watch and, for my side, a nice game to play.”

History is against the visitors. Wrexham have not won in Swansea since a League One meeting in 2001, and are still chasing a first victory in south Wales since returning to the Football League, having lost at Newport County in 2024 and at the Swansea.com Stadium last season before drawing at Cardiff City on the opening weekend.

Last season’s meetings were shared, Swansea winning 2-1 at home before Christmas and Wrexham 2-0 in north Wales in March.

For all the billing an all-Welsh meeting brings, the head coach was careful about the word derby.

“We have one derby that is in 87 days, and then we’re going to have a game against Wrexham this week, and what we need to do is focus on the football. That’s what we can do,” he said.

“I think it will be a really tough game for both teams.”

Eom off to the Asian Cup

Swansea will lose Eom Ji-sung to international duty after next Tuesday’s trip to Southampton, with the winger joining up with South Korea for the Asian Cup and missing the games against Burnley and Lincoln City later this month.

He has scored in each of the last two matches.

“He needs to go for the international duties. It’s something that is important for him, regarding his country and his national team, so I need to respect that,” Matos said.

“Ji-sung is playing really good, having impact for the team, helping us a lot. I’m really happy with that at the moment. When he’s not here it’s up to me to find the best replacement.”

One candidate scored the last time he was called upon.

“We have impacted every game. Ronald’s last game at Derby, he came on, scored, and the effort and the commitment was there. It’s up to me to try to replace when Ji-sung is not here,” the head coach said.

Swansea go into the game top of the Championship, with wins over Stoke City, Derby and Watford and a draw with Sheffield United, and have conceded once all season.

Kick-off at the Swansea.com Stadium is at 8pm on Saturday, in front of the Sky Sports cameras.