Matt Grimes has opened up on the mental battles he endured doing his unsuccessful loan spell with Leeds United during the 2016/17 campaign. The Swansea City midfielder started just once in the Championship all season and only made 11 further appearances in all competitions, mostly from the bench.
So poor was his season with the Whites that he dropped down to League One the following season with Northampton in a spell that allowed Grimes to fall back in love with football. It was a stark contrast to his time in West Yorkshire where a lack of game time, living alone and outside noise ruined his chances of making his mark.
Speaking very openly in his programme notes ahead of Swansea’s 3-3 draw with Bournemouth, the 26-year-old said: “The mental state I was in that season [at Leeds], I don’t wish on any footballer. I was training, not playing, going home and sleeping on the sofa because I was living on my own as I wasn’t with my girlfriend at the time.
