Swansea City finds themselves all of a sudden in the headlines on the back of beating both Cardiff and West Brom in the past five days. And oddly, there is as ever a fairly large queue of people making silly headlines from the clubs current situation when it comes to players contracts. The Birmingham City result may well shut them up for a bit.
Captain Matt Grimes, Ben Hamer, Korey Smith, Jake Bidwell, Jamie Paterson and Kyle Naughton are all out of contract after the current campaign, while Ethan Laird's loan from Manchester United will come to an end. Let’s deal with that sensibly. Ben Hamer will be 34 next month, and with all due respects may well have two seasons left in him, but he came on a free, and if needs be he will go the same way whenever that is the right time. Korey Smith has found a new lease of life at Swansea, and will be more than aware that at his age a contract offer is all that he wants and needs for now. If it’s not good enough then he too will have to do the journey east from the club that has given him a new lease of life. For us here, he is a gem of a player and shouldn’t find signing a new contract too difficult a decision to make.
Jake Bidwell is different, if the swans by some magical piece of fate made it to the premier league Jake would sign a new contract in a heartbeat, if the club fails he would be foolish to turn down any terms offered. He came to the swans as a free, if needs be he can leave by the same route. His family are settled in Wales, and his new baby will change him for life. The multi million sums talked about in the last window for Bidwell are pure fantasy. Jamie Paterson is, when all is said and done in the twilight of his pretty average career. He has shown glimpses of pure genius in his professional life, but only glimpses. It could well be he has fallen in to the Russell Martin revolution late on, and is in his element. However, for a player who has not reached the current levels that he has at Swansea in fourteen years, we have to say once again - sign a nice two year deal in January, or leave as you came, on a free transfer. It’s highly unlikely he will turn down anything the swans offer him. He has been around the block and knows the score.
Kyle Naughton is an asset, however like Bidwell and Hamer he is cracking on a bit, if the swans are clever they will offer him a year, but let’s be honest, the club have got what they wanted from him, and more over the years. The list as it stands has ended, and if all these players went, it’s hardly going to make headlines. For us, we honestly believe that Matt Grimes will be offered new, and very decent new terms. He knows he is on the brink of his final lucrative contract, so really when all things are considered it isn’t beyond the realms of possibility he will go in the summer, having rejected a new swans contract. If he does, then fair play, but the grass for Grimes won’t be anywhere near as green and lush as it is at this time in his career at Swansea.
The players mentioned as potentially leaving are not an issue, nor should any of them be for any swans fan. None in that list will be missed, and we have to say, all are very easily replaceable. It’s not us being harsh, it’s us after many years of experience knowing none of these players will raise much of an eyebrow in ten years time. Grimes may be a slight exception but let’s be honest, his replacement in Flynn Downes is already here. In fact most of us know Downes was his replacement before the transfer window ended. These players are not Ben Davies, Joe Rodon, Connor Roberts, Dan James, they were personal losses. And they are definitely not going to be remembered like Curt, Robbie, Charlo, Latchford or Toshack. And that’s the way we have to see it.
Let’s not be dragged in to worrying about these types of players who will be out of contract come June, Naughton came years ago from Spurs and has repaid his fee. Grimes may well see the club recuperate the nigh on two million spent on him seven years ago. But it’s not an issue, seriously it isn’t. All are valuable in their own way, but none are irreplaceable, they all have a value, and let’s be honest that value is no different to when they come to Swansea.
Absolutely nothing in the main.
And that is about what the club we follow owes them. They have earned their many thousands, and in some cases are set for life, in a personal way we wish them well. But this is Swansea City, not Matt Grimes A.F.C. nor any other player you care to mention. Just think when the older more grey haired swans fan mentions a game or a result, do you think they will salivate over Naughton or Bidwell ? There were many players in many swans results you may never have heard of. And may well have never heard of since. It’s the same today, as it is tomorrow. Our list doesn’t get better by giving these guys new contracts, in fact it gets better for not doing so. Football should never go stale on sentimental feelings.
It isn’t the end of the world if we lose any or all of them come June 2022, be that for free or they just walk away. Hundreds have done it before, and many featured in those memorable swans games we all know about. The club survived. The real issue is those sides of yesteryear we reference were great Swansea football teams. Of course they were. But there will be players in those great sides you have completely forgotten, and that’s the point,
It isn't for us to be concerned about these contracts that are yet to be signed, it’s for the players to be concerned about what they leave behind, not the other way round, And to be honest in that list we refer to today I don’t see anyone who will be that well remembered any way. It’s a fact of life and sometimes we have to accept it. That is if those players can actually accept it themselves.