Retained list fails to tell whole story at Swansea
ON Thursday, Swansea City published their retained list for the 2022-23 season. On the surface of things, there was little to be surprised at. Three firstteam stars left the building – Ben Hamer, Korey Smith and Yan Dhanda.
Swansea head coach Russell Martin had confirmed the first two were leaving earlier this month, with neither departure coming as a massive shock. Dhanda has been barely used by Martin since his arrival in south Wales.
Three goalkeepers from the under23s – Jamie Searle, Nico DefreitasHansen and Josh Gould – are also exiting stage right, while 12 more academy members will also be leaving.
Scott Butler, Rio Campbell, Ben Erickson, Cameron Evans, Jaden Forrester, Jacob Jones, Dylan Morgan, Ryan Bassett, Joshua Edwards, Aaron Hillier, Dylan Perkins and Tyler Evans have not been handed fresh terms.
That is a total of 18 players hanging up their boots at Fairwood for the last time. It’s quite common for there to be quite a big turnover of players - especially at academy level – come the end of a campaign with contracts expiring.
But if one takes another, closer glance at Swansea’s retained list, a number of names leap out as further potential departures. The players who spent last season on loan elsewhere, for starters, especially in light of Martin’s comments earlier this month.
WalesOnline understands that Swansea are willing to let the majority of the players who left on loan last season to depart on a permanent basis this summer. That means if the offers are right, they can all leave.
Morgan Whittaker, Kyle Joseph, Liam Cullen, Jordon Garrick, Steven Benda and Liam Walsh can then – potentially – be added to the 18 who have just departed.
Whittaker and Joseph are attracting interest from League One side Portsmouth, while Liam Cullen has also been linked with the Fratton Park club. It is understood that Whittaker is keen to kickstart his career elsewhere.
Garrick spent last season with Plymouth Argyle and although the Pilgrims missed out on the play-offs, the winger enjoyed a fruitful stint in League One. He bagged seven goals in 50 appearances for the Home Park outfit. He is understood to be keen on a return to Devon.
German stopper Benda is likely to be sold or loaned out, while Walsh’s loan at Hull City wasn’t exactly a roaring success, meaning he could struggle to nail down a move given his injury record and wage demands.
Ollie Cooper is expected to buck the trend and be given a chance to impress over pre-season.
“Ollie’s a real possibility,” said Martin when asked by WalesOnline if any loan men could play a part for the Swans next term. “The rest we’ll have to see.
“We’ll sit down with them when they’re done. We’ve stayed in touch with them.
“We can discuss it. I expect there’ll be a few who want to kick-start their careers and play elsewhere because they don’t fit the long-term vision of the team or have a position that is ideally suited to theirs. We’ll just have to wait and see.”
If those on loan last term were to depart either on loan or permanently, that is a further six to add to the 18 departees.
That’s before you even consider the futures of Ryan Bennett, Jay Fulton and Joel Piroe.
Bennett has been told he can leave SA1, Fulton has barely featured for Martin and Piroe is expected to be sold to balance the books. Martin’s task therefore this summer is yet another challenging one.
Swans chief Julian Winter revealed at the club’s fans’ forum this week that two centre-backs and a right-wingback were their transfer priority this summer.
Judging by the retained list, there will be other areas of the squad – not just the defence – that will need to be addressed too.