Fans will get to watch Swansea City in action for the first time this summer as Russell Martin's men face Plymouth Argyle on Tuesday night.
The Swans have already played Forest Green Rovers, Colchester United and Haverfordwest County in behind-closed-doors matches but will now play in front of a crowd against the Pilgrims at Home Park. And with just shy of three weeks to go until the real action begins at Rotherham United, Martin still has plenty of issues to ponder.
We took a closer look at some of the dilemmas the head coach will be giving thought over the course of the remaining days before the trip to Yorkshire on July 30.
Goalkeeper situation
Swansea have added Remy Mitchell and Archie Matthews to their youth ranks this summer, although, at senior level, there are yet to be any changes to the goalkeeper picture following the exit of Ben Hamer - who has been training with Brighton since leaving south Wales.
The club are willing to let Steven Benda move on, meaning Lewis Webb would be back-up to first choice shot stopper Andy Fisher unless a replacement was brought in as expected. There has been interest in Benda, with his former loan club Peterborough United failing to find a resolution in their bid to recruit the German on a permanent basis.
Fisher will continue in goal this season and will hope to build on his half a year at the club so far. With a more settled defence in front of him, he has every chance of improving and fully maximising his potential.
Sign another wing-back
Matty Sorinola has already been drafted in on loan from Belgium side Union SG, but Swansea need another wing-back. Cyrus Christie and Hannes Wolf are no longer at the club, and Martin clearly requires plenty of energy and athleticism from his wide players.
Sorinola can of course play on the right while Ryan Manning and Joel Latibeaudiere have operated in wing-back roles under the current coaching staff, but Martin has regularly stated the need for specialists in his system.
Swansea have shown an interest in Chiedozie Ogbene and Marcus Harness this summer and may find it easier to put a package together to bring in a right wing-back following the sale of Flynn Downes to West Ham United, although significant investment remains unlikely. Wales Under-21 international Fin Stevens has also been linked.
Find the best formation(s)
Latibeaudiere recently opened up on Swansea's flexibility during pre-season so far. Speaking after the two 60-minute pre-season fixtures against Colchester, the defender said: "We were able to play in new formations with new players against Colchester, and build the chemistry that we’ll need moving forward."
The Swans predominantly used a 3-4-2-1 shape last term but did use a back four on a few occasions. Indeed, different opponents require different ideas, and the hope is Swansea can be far more adaptable this term having had a full pre-season and the 2021/22 campaign to learn Martin's methods.
Of course, further transfer work could also play a part in Martin's thinking when it comes to the season opener against Rotherham later this month, but the squad as a whole are far more used to what is required in the current system now which can only be a plus.
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The Olivier Ntcham debate
There was real excitement when Ntcham made the move from Celtic to Swansea last summer, although, while he produced several moments of genuine quality, it felt as though the 26-year-old didn't reach his best levels in his debut campaign at the club.
In fairness to Ntcham, he barely kicked a ball for the best part of a year before joining the Swans while he also missed out on pre-season. But those issues no longer apply, and the hope is that he can produce high-level displays on a far more consistent basis, if he can force his way into the starting line-up, that is.
Jamie Paterson and Joel Piroe operated as the two men behind Michael Obafemi for the majority of the second half of last season as Ntcham's influence waned. But, as his strikes against Luton Town and Barnsley demonstrate, Ntcham is blessed with real quality and has the potential to be a star in the Championship if he can hit his stride.
Fringe players
Benda has already been mentioned, but there are far more pressing concerns when it comes to the fringe players. Ryan Bennett has not been training with the first-team squad this summer having been told he can leave the club.
Reading showed an interest in the defender, and the same applies to Jay Fulton who is said to have been looked at by the Royals. Following the sale of Downes along with the injury sustained by Liam Walsh, Swansea would be in need of an additional midfielder, despite the arrival of Joe Allen, if Fulton was sold.
Elsewhere, there are plenty of young guns who need to sort out their situations one way or another. Liam Cullen, Jordon Garrick, Morgan Whittaker, Kyle Joseph, Dan Williams and Brandon Cooper all had loan spells away from Swansea last season and appear unlikely to be regular starters under Martin at present.
Exits for some of the aforementioned players, either on loan or permanently, will help Martin bring in one or two more men to bolster what is already looking like a squad that is far closer aligned to what the current coaching staff want.
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Contingency plans for Piroe
The Swans were fully expecting transfer interest in last season's star Piroe following his remarkable debut campaign at the club. The Dutchman netted 24 goals in 47 appearances after joining from PSV Eindhoven and has been linked with clubs including Leicester City and Watford.
Swansea have long had contingency plans in place to cover every player and every position in the squad in the event that exits occur. And while they are no longer in need to sell following the departure of Downes, every player has their price.
Should Swansea receive an offer in the region of £18m to £20m for Piroe then the 22-year-old will no doubt be moving on to pastures new. But, as things stand, they are far more confident of keeping last season's top scorer in their ranks and having plenty more parties in the 2022/23 season.
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