They always say that the players player of the year award is an award highly valued by the players so I guess therefore that if a manager says that you should have been manager of the year you cannot help but take that praise with a smile on your face.

And that is exactly what Ronald Koeman bestowed on Garry Monk when he declared that the Swans boss would have been a deserved winner of the manager of the year crown that was given to Jose Mourinho at the back end of last season.

Monk led the Swans to a record breaking 8th place in the Premier League in his first full season in management, one place behind Koeman's Southampton side in his own first full season in the Premier League.

Both sides were tipped by some 'experts' at the start of the season as heading towards relegation but both defied the odds by staying the season inside the division's top 10 and securing fantastic finishes as a result.

And Koeman told the Mirror “I have massive respect for Garry Monk’s work at Swansea City. You can compare his club to Southampton. Similar stadium, resources and fans.

“In the winter they lost Wilfried Bony to Manchester City, but they kept getting brilliant results.

“For me, Monk could have easily have been the [Premier League] winner, instead of Jose Mourinho, at the LMA Manager of the Year Awards.

“It would have been fully justified.’’

Koeman himself has been linked with the Swans managerial post twice in recent seasons, both when Brendan Rodgers and Michael Laudrup left the club.

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