SKY’S THE LIMIT FOR GUEHI AS HE SHINES YET AGAIN
MARC Guehi has been told that his future is anything he wants it to be after another barnstorming display in a Swansea City shirt. The 20-year-old was given the man of the match award once again following the 1-1 draw with Barnsley, a result that sealed Swansea’s place in the play-off final.
The Chelsea on-loan man has been one of the standout performers for Steve Cooper this season, with his partnership with either Ryan Bennett or Ben Cabango the bedrock on which Swansea’s formidable defensive record has been built.
Cooper has always preached about signing the right people as well as the right players for Swansea, and despite his tender years, Guehi has the maturity of a seasoned professional.
That was evidenced in his postmatch interview with Sky Sports, where he was baffled by the fact pundit Andy Hinchcliffe had awarded him man of the match yet again. Hinchcliffe awarded the centre-back the gong in the first leg as well.
Guehi’s humbleness shone through when receiving the news.
“Honestly, I don’t know how! I don’t know, the first one I was really surprised, now it’s getting a bit ridiculous!” he said, with a beaming smile.
“Everyone was fantastic today, you know, to a man. I could name everyone.
“For me to get this again, I just don’t know.”
His whole interview was a delight from start to finish, with the youngster saying how much he has enjoyed his time in SA1.
“It’s unbelievable to be part of this team and get to this final,” he told Sky.
“The fans, amazing tonight. I couldn’t hear myself think, I’ve lost my voice a little bit from all the screaming, but just a great feeling.”
He thanked Swansea for giving him the chance to get minutes under his belt and agreed with team-mate Andre Ayew over the benefits of hav
ing a squad mixed with youth and experience.
“Amazing. I’ve been given the opportunity by the gaffer, by the staff, so to come here and really try to excel in my game, I’ve got fantastic teammates who want to help me every single day,” he added.
“We’ve got a good mixture of youth and experience, the older lads have really helped me, given me the right advice in games and in training. It’s just a fantastic feeling being here at Swansea.”
All of this has helped his personal development.
“Massively (grown). It’s really important for someone like me to come to the Championship and play as many games as possible,” he explained.
“Last season I didn’t play that many, but this season thankfully and fortunately I have played a lot of games and really enjoyed my time here, it’s been fantastic.”
His attitude on and off the pitch impressed those in the Sky Sports studios.
Former Preston boss Alex Neil was blown away by his performance against the Tykes and by his humble nature.
Neil said: “I thought his interview was brilliant. He’s so humble. He’s obviously unaware about how good he actually is.
“We were singing his praises throughout the game. But his reading of the game... his stats I couldn’t believe. He won 100 per cent of his aerial duels against Barnsley. If you play against Barnsley, balls are coming over, you are going to get tested and he won every single one of them, incredible.
“I think he’s only going to get better. I think that humbleness is a great trait to have as a player.”
Fellow analyst Curtis Davies also waxed lyrical.
“I’m slowly becoming his biggest fan and I don’t even know him,” he stated.
“But I’m talking about the way he defends, the way he speaks afterwards, you could see it, when you go on loan, it’s one thing to go on loan and know your self-development is going to improve.
“But you could see, he almost had tears in his eyes, and he cared, it meant something to him.
“Because he knows he’ll be back at Chelsea next year. For him, effectively it’s nothing in total. But if he cares and if he knows that if he can put in a performance anything like he has in the past two games, he’ll go well to keeping Ivan Toney quiet.”
Davies added that Guehi could play anywhere he wants to, with his
future looking ever so bright. He has even tipped the central defender to earn international honours.
“I’ve worked with other loanees at other clubs that I won’t name, they’ve come in on big money and been OK with certain individuals but then they’ll be on the pitch and they’ll be cashing people off,” he said.
“Whereas I worked with Fikayo Tomori, Mason Mount, Harry Wilson at Derby and they were three exemplary pros first and foremost, but great kids.
“He just oozes that to me. He looks like a player for the future for Chelsea, for England, for whoever he wants to play for, because at the moment watching him, as a 20-year-old, the head on his shoulders at 20 years old as well as the ability to handle the ball, handle the pressure and everything that comes with this play-off campaign, he’s been fantastic.”