These are your Swansea City headlines on Sunday, March 20.
Leeds eye Downes as Phillips replacement
The Times report that Leeds United have identified Swansea's Flynn Downes as a replacement for Kalvin Phillips, should Aston Villa succeed in their £60million attempts to sign him.
The England midfielder is hot property, with Newcastle United and West Ham United also keen on the 26-year-old. Villa are prepared to offer him £10million a season, and although new Leeds boss Jesse Marsch says he "would love to keep" Phillips, a fee of £60million would surely be too good to turn down.
READ MORE: Russell Martin says he knows what he needs in summer window
The same publication state that Elland Road chiefs have several targets in mind to replace Phillips should he leave, with Downes among them. The former Ipswich Town man has been superb since his summer switch to south Wales, with the 23-year-old destined to play at the very top.
Routledge teases fans
Swansea legend Wayne Routledge caused a bit of stir this weekend when he posted a picture on his Instagram account.
Kitted out in Swansea training gear and sat on what looks like a physio table, the 37-year-old accompanied the snap with the eyes emoji - the universally accepted symbol for "what's going on here then?"
The winger suffered a knee injury in the semi-final second leg contest with Barnsley in the latter stages of the 2020/21 campaign. And Routledge decided to hang up his boots back in October after turning down the offer of a new deal at the club.
“I think the hardest part is actually leaving this place, I’ve made friends for life, unbelievable memories and also now I have a beautiful family," he said at the time. "To leave this place was the hardest decision."
One suspects he is just back at the club to get fit and to check on his recovery progress; nevertheless, the sight of Routledge wearing the Swans badge again has got supporters speculating a return.
Martin wants Naughton tied down
Russell Martin says he wants Kyle Naughton to stay at the club after the defender notched up his 250th appearance for the club.
The 33-year-old is out of contract at the end of the season but the head coach is keen for his former team-mate to remain a Swan beyond the summer.
“Kyle is a special player, and he is a special guy,” said Martin, who plans talks with the club's owners over a deal.
“He is so important with the presence he brings to the team, the way he plays, the way he trains, the way he looks after himself. He is excellent. First and foremost he is a great person, he has served this club so well over many years, he has played in a number of different positions, with different styles and different managers.
“If you are around after working under so many managers, and having that longevity, it can be very easy to be taken for granted. But really it should underline his importance and how good he is. We don’t take him for granted, I am sure the supporters don’t, because he has been incredible this season.
“He loves it here, his family love it here and he is settled. I think he would find it hard to see himself playing anywhere else now. We have to make sure that at some point very soon we tie him down for next season because you cannot understate the value of people who know the club and are connected to the club. Hopefully we will do that soon and get the opportunity to discuss that with the owners and get it done as quickly as we can.”
Ogbeta getting up to speed
Nathanael Ogbeta made his home debut for Swansea on Saturday in one of few bright spots to emerge from the 0-0 draw with Birmingham City.
Swansea weren't at the races against the Midlands outfit, with 21 hours' travelling on a bus this week taking its toll on the home side's energy levels. A draw is something, though, and Martin will have been pleased to see Ogbeta make his bow in front of the home supporters.
The former Shrewsbury man came on in the second half, and with his injury problems now behind him, the left-sided defender says he is keen to get up to speed as soon as possible.
“It was awesome. Just to play in front of the fans is amazing,” he said. "I’ve been playing in League One and the fans aren't as vibrant as they are here so it was really good to get out there and show what I can do. Hopefully I can do more.
“Being injured was difficult, but it gave me time to get stronger in the gym and get used to the surroundings and my team-mates so I feel like I’m in a good place.
"Even though it was a negative situation, I really feel like I’ve got to use it as a positive to get back to full fitness and settle in.
“[The international break] is so important for because I haven’t had many training sessions to understand the philosophy and the style of play. I’ve watched a lot of the analysis, but I haven’t really been able to work with the gaffer and the team on the demands or what they want from me, so it’s going to be a pivotal time for me to learn and really be an asset to the team.
“The aim is to really understand the style of play and give it our all. We don’t want to just let these games go to waste. We want to use every game to learn, to grow and improve.”
Swansea now break off for the international window, with the small matter of a South Wales derby to prepare for in that time.
Despite not breaking the deadlock against the Blues, Ogbeta feels it was a step in the right direction.
“It was a difficult game. We’ve had a tough run of fixtures and there’s been a lot of travelling,” Ogbeta added. “The lads were saying that earlier on in the season that might have been a game we would have lost, so it was good that we showed the character to stay in the game and on another day we could win if we produced a bit more quality.
“The clean sheet shows that defensively we’re doing the right things and we’re on the right track."
Bowyer compliments Swans' surface
Blues boss Lee Bowyer became the second manager to praise the Swansea.com Stadium pitch this season after the stalemate in south Wales.
Earlier on this term, Coventry City manager Mark Robins commended the club for having a quality playing surface - adding that the Sky Blues would be looking to replicate the conditions at their own ground.
Bowyer could be forgiven for feeling aggrieved with just a point in Landore, such were the chances his side spurned on Saturday.
He said post match: “We saw how we can play when the playing surface is good.
“The pitch here is a lovely pitch that’s Swansea, they want to pass the football so they have got to have a pitch like that.
“And that’s what we need because we have also got some good players who want to pass the ball.
“Obviously at home our pitch is not very good so it’s more difficult to play the way we did today. It’s no coincidence our last two away games, Bristol City and here two good pitches and we play well on both days. That’s not a coincidence.
“We did everything but score the goal today, it was clear to see we should have won the game.
“We missed three chances from two yards out, first half, second half I think we had clear cut chances in both halves. Not half chances, I mean clear, should be goals, it’s harder to miss than to score. We deserved the three points and the were the better side.”
