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Gylfi Sigurdsson: I had to fly Swans’ nest
GYLFI SIGURDSSON admits he felt there was no point staying at Swansea after Brendan Rodgers left as the Tottenham midfielder prepares to return to a club who are now actually two places higher in the Premier League.
The Iceland international played 19 times for Swansea during a loan spell at the Liberty Stadium during which he rattled in seven goals.
Inevitably, the Welsh club sought to make the move from Hoffenheim a permanent one once the season had ended.
But negotiations collapsed the moment Rodgers announced he was leaving the club and heading for Liverpool.
“I wasn’t close to joining Swansea permanently because Brendan obviously left and that changed everything,” said Sigurdsson.
“I didn’t know who would be coming in and what would happen but what did happen was obviously a good thing for the club because they won a cup this season and are doing well in the league. The club has pushed on from last season.”
I wasn’t close to joining Swansea permanently because Brendan obviously left and that changed everything.
Sigurdsson was unveiled as a £6.8million Tottenham player a fortnight after Michael Laudrup was appointed at the Liberty and has failed to recapture the same free-scoring form at White Hart Lane.
His two goals against Slovenia during the international week took his tally in the World Cup qualifiers this season to three in four games – by contrast his Premier League return for Tottenham has been just one in 26.
That is largely due to playing in a wider position than he is used to and often from the bench, but Sigurdsson insists he is not one to cause a fuss.
“It’s different from last season when I was playing more central behind the strikers but if he [manager Andre Villas-Boas] wants me to play left or right then I’m more than happy to do it,” he said. “As long as I’m playing I’m happy.”
matthew dunn‘Brendan left and it changed’