Borja planning his exit from Swans?
BORJA Baston could be engineering a move away from Swansea City after switching agents in a bid to attract interest from Spain.
And he could be joined by Bafetimbi Gomis who appears to be inching to a permanent exit with Galatasaray said to have agreed a deal in principle with the French forward.
Borja became Swansea’s record signing less than a year ago when the Liberty club shelled out £15.5m to sign him from La Liga giants Atletico Madrid.
The move sparked much excitement among Swans fans following his 18 goals for lowly Eibar in the Spanish top-flight – enough to put him in the top ten in the league, just one behind Real Madrid superstar Gareth Bale.
But, having arrived in South Wales with fitness issues, Borja struggled to make a mark under either Franceso Guidolin or Bob Bradley before featuring for just 79 minutes in the 19-game survival spell of Paul Clement.
Borja was left out of the matchday squad on occasions and, with Jordan Ayew preferred to first deputise for, and then partner, frontline striker Fernando Llorente, it has raised questions over Borja’s long-term future at the Liberty.
Villarreal made a loan offer for Borja on transfer deadline day, a move that only broke down in the final hours.
And with the Yellow Submarine still registering an interest in the 24-year-old, it has been claimed in Spain that Borja has opted for a new representative to try and bring about a Premier League exit.
Manolo Garcia Quoilon has reportedly told media outlets that the Spain youth international has several clubs keen on bringing him back to the league where he caught the eye as an Atletico youth product.
There has been little reassurances out of Swansea that Borja has a frontline future at the club and an option to cash-in and reinvest on the striker – who scored just once in his four starts – could be taken up.
However, Borja is not thought to be one of the top earners at the Liberty so it remains to be seen whether Swansea would be in a rush to sell if at least a large chunk of their record outlay can be recovered.
Swansea may wait to see how the summer market develops with topscorer Llorente not ruling out a move, though the former Juventus marksman did outline he is happy to stay at the club he helped stay in the top-flight with his 13 goals.
Gomis is not expected to be among the frontline options with Swansea now waiting on a formal bid from Galatasaray for the striker as the Black Panther claws closer to a Liberty exit.
Widespread reports in Turkey have stated the Turkish giants have agreed a deal in principle with 31-year-old who has spent the past season on loan at Marseille.
The French outfit had already indicated they would not look to make Gomis’ stay at the Stade Velodrome a permanent one, despite his 20 goals that left him the club’s top scorer.
It is thought Gomis’ age and the fee and wages involved has seen them look elsewhere for a permanent deal and have now moved to open talks with Inter Milan striker Stevan Joevtic.
It has paved the way for Gomis to head to Istanbul with Galatasaray’s Sporting Director Cenk Ergun said to have spoken with the France international and shaking hands on a three-year deal.
However, a transfer fee with Swansea still has to be agreed with Gomis having a year left on the bumper Bosman contract he signed on his arrival in South Wales from Lyon in 2014.
It is thought Swansea would seek around £4m for the frontman – nicknamed the Black Panther and who celebrates the goal in tribute to his moniker.
While his scoring feats in France earned him praise for Paul Clement – who did not close the door on Gomis returning to Swansea contention next term – his wages mean Swansea would be happy to formalise an exit.
Gomis is thought to earn around £70,000-a-week at Swansea, Marseille having covered the cost of the contract during his year-long stay in Ligue 1.
The savings on wages would allow Swansea and Clement to look elsewhere to strengthen this summer.
Gomis hit 13 goals in 64 appearances at Swansea, four of which came in successive games at the start of the 2015/16 season.
But he failed to find consistency in the Premier League and increasingly struggled to make his mark before heading to France last August.