With the new season literally days away, here's my take on what we can expect from Michael Laudrup's new-look Swans this year.

It's a good time to be Joe Allen. The last 12 months have seen the youngster's profile shoot from useful midfielder in an exciting small team to, apparently, £15 million pounds worth of Big Six talent.

There's no denying Swans' fans affection for Allen - he'd been in the organisation since he was nine years old - but at times like these, a strong spoonful of perspective helps the medicine go down. Joe Allen was not, after all, the only player in the Swans' 11th place side last season.

The Swans finished their pre-season tour of the United States with a win, a draw and a loss. The results might not have been much to write home about, but the tour has given new boss Michael Laudrup plenty of opportunity to evaluate the players.

With three new players signed already, talk of contraction in the squad and Liverpool sniffing around the Liberty like a pushy old lady in the reduced section of Tesco, it seems pretty certain more change will come before the season opener.