BARCLAY'S AWARDS FOR THE MONTH OF AUGUST GOES TO GARRY AND DIEGÖ...

Swansea City boss Garry Monk has
been named the Barclays Premier
League Manager of the Month for
August and Chelsea striker Diego Costa
has won the Player award. The Swans won all three of their league
fixtures in the first month of the season,
including a 2-1 opening-day victory
over Manchester United at Old Trafford. The Welsh club also beat Burnley and
West Bromwich Albion at the Liberty
Stadium, keeping a clean sheet in both
of those matches. Monk was short-listed alongside
Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho,
whose team also won their three
games and are ahead of Swansea at the
top of the division on goal difference,
Aston Villa boss Paul Lambert and Mark Hughes of Stoke City. He attributed the award to the group
effort of his Swansea squad and staff,
but says it is a case of 'starting again'
after a break for international football. "It’s a collective thing as far as I’m
concerned," said Monk. "It’s not just for
me, it’s for all of the guys. "It’s going well for us. We’ve had the
international break so there has been a
couple of weeks between games for us,
so we’re starting fresh and we’re
starting again really." Chelsea striker Costa has scored in each of his side's league matches since
joining in the summer from Atletico
Madrid. The 25-year-old has been an instant
success in England, notching in the
wins over Burnley and Leicester and
scoring twice in the Blues' 6-3 win over
Everton at Goodison Park. Monk and Costa will be in direct
opposition on Saturday when Swansea
play Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.