It may always seem like a bit of a formality when a player is re-captured on a permanent deal after a loan spell, but in Swansea’s case their £6.8million signing of Gylfi Sigurdsson could be the steal of the summer. The deal is yet to be officially finalised, but after agreeing a fee and personal terms, it seems like the 22 year-old Icelandic revelation, who was the Premiership’s player of the month in March, is set to continue his impressive spell at the Liberty Stadium next season.
It’s difficult to overlook the impact that Sigurdsson had on Brendan Rodgers’ side in 2012, after he netted seven Premier League goals in just sixteen appearances from a midfield role. After being loaned from Hoffenheim, many would have thought it difficult for him to adapt to the style of play that Swansea have taken on in recent years, and whether the squad could accommodate him in a first team role. But he bought new life and invigorated the side, maintaining good form and producing some impressive performances up until the end of the campaign.
Like Swansea, other promoted sides have had good fortune in England’s top division in recent years. Look at Wigan, with their first season in the Premiership in 2005 they managed a 10th place finish under Paul Jewell, but then suffered ‘second season syndrome’, surviving in 17th on the final day in 06/07. But when you look at Brendan Rodgers’ side, its easy to see how they can overcome a similar fate and push on towards the European places next season.
It’s not because of big signings or relying on the experience of key players, its largely down to their ability to play good football. Their style of play has been praised and rightly so, as they could have been forgiven for not being so adventurous in their first season in the Premiership and adapting their approach. Swansea showed not fear, backed their system and the manager had faith in the players which not only paid dividends for this season, but may highlight the emphasis on the current set of players and not the need to invest to move forward. The fact that they are willing to smash their club transfer record on a player who has already become part of the club shows faith and appreciation for what the current set of players can achieve.
After performing above expectations in the first year in the Premiership, its easy to become overconfident and take that level of performance as par. One of the problems that could see them having to re-evaluate early on is that other teams may have ‘found them out’, in terms of tactical approach. We saw it on occasion this season, where opponents press Swansea high up the pitch and give them little room to play the ball around their own half. It could be a case that the better Brendan Rodgers’ side perform, the more likely other teams are to take note of this and concentrate on countering their style.
With the current squad remaining loyal and appearing to evade the attention of other Premier League managers in the transfer market so far, it could be a case of continuing to build the foundations of a growing club. The manager, despite rumours of an approach from Liverpool which was denied this week, seems happy in the job which will be a key factor in Swansea’s progression. I would be reluctant to tinker with what seems to be a winning formula and I think the fans are the first to recognise that the team play a fantastic brand of football and, at the moment, this doesn’t need to change.
Unless a large amount of money is about to open up from the men in suits upstairs, it seems like their permanent capture of Sigurdsson will be the most significant move for them this summer. I think its exactly what they need because it continues to build the momentum already generated by last season’s performance and if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
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