SWIFT LEARNS SO MUCH FROM THE ROYALS
READING midfielder John Swift believes leaving Chelsea to battle for a starting berth at the Madejski Stadium has been the key to improving his game.
After three loan spells away from Stamford Bridge, the 23-year-old signed on for the Royals in 2016 and has gone on to become a mainstay in the first team, but had to show his worth to get to this point.
The former England U21 man has highlighted the differences between having an escape route back to a bigger parent club and becoming a permanent fixture at Reading.
“When you’re on loan, when it’s not going well you can easily just go back to Chelsea, train with them and then go out on loan again, then it would hopefully go right,” said Swift.
“When I finally left and joined up at Reading for pre-season, it felt different. I had to prove myself, I had to get in the team. I’d not left before, so it was very different to going on loan and I had to prove myself this time.
“It wasn’t a case of hoping it goes well, then if it didn’t, I’d go back.
“If it didn’t go well, I’d be stuck. It was about proving I was ready for that level.”
His first season at his new home saw him nominated for the EFL Young Player of the Year award and Swift thinks both the regularity of games and the style of football being played have both contributed to his progress.
“It’s made me a better player, one million per cent,” he said.
“Playing a lot of games is hard on your body. But I think for anyone who leaves a top team because they want to get more football – unless you go to a team who plays the way you want to play, you’re going to be uncomfortable.”