Beware: The Curse of Swansea City

Danny Graham is the central figure in the current 'I want to leave Swansea City' rumours. Though nothing is confirmed, he's clearly not happy starting behind Michu every week and it looks like he wants out.

In Laudrup's defence, Graham hasn't particularly wowed recently.
In Graham's defence, he is a footballer who wants to play football (we assume).

Can we blame him? If he really wants to play, maybe Swansea isn't the best bet for him at the moment. Then again he may just want to go for the money, like so many others have done in recent years. But be warned Graham - bad things tend to happen to those who leave Swansea, especially for the money.

To commemorate this event, and the closing of the transfer window, I'm dedicating a blog post to look at some victims of the satisfying curse:

Scott Sinclair
This is the best one for me. Greed and nothing more led him away from Swansea City. Sinclair clearly had visions off knocking the likes of David Silva to the bench and cementing himself as one of Man City's starting wingers. However he was the only one in the whole country who could not see he would be a reserve player and nothing more. For a man who spent much of his career hopping clubs, he clearly made a massive mistake - but he'll receive no sympathy from us.

Joe Allen
Local-boy-makes-good Joe Allen was one of the key figures in Swansea's midfield last season. However, he was very quick to follow Brendan Rodgers out of South Wales to Liverpool. Unfortunately for Allen he hasn't really shone under Rodgers the second time around and has seen more of the bench than he probably wanted to. And, with Rodgers on the hunt for new midfielders, will he have much of a chance to impress at Liverpool in the future?

Darren Pratley
There was plenty of hoo-hah (finally managed to use that phrase) surrounding Pratley's departure but he officially left the club for Bolton on a free transfer, immediately after Swansea reached the Premier League. He now plays regularly for the Championship club which sit in an uninspiring 16th position. After his amazing halfway-line goal against Nottingham Forest, getting relegated with Bolton must have been a little anti-climactic.

Dorus de Vries
If there was ever a case of why you shouldn't leave Swansea for reasons of greed, The Cautionary Tale of Dorus de Vries is one people should tell their grandchildren. The highly-respected goalkeeper was adorned by Swans fans for many a season, including his awesome promotion-winning final season. On his departure, De Vries said: "Wolves are going into a third season in the top division and ... the difference for me is that while Swansea will hope to maintain their Premier League status, Wolves will expect to survive."

While Swansea are now 9th in the Premier League, Wolves are currently 18th in the Championship, and de Vries is a reserve player. While we can't hate him, we can chuckle at the fact that he may be sitting on the bench for a League One team next season.

Brendan Rodgers (not a player, but still...)
Rodgers ditched a place where he was loved, to join a bigger club where he was initially hated. Fans have warmed slightly to him - from hatred to indifference - but with Liverpool off the mark and Swansea heading for another Wembley final, Rodgers must have some regrets now. Not that he would admit it. Okay? Okay.

Alan Tate
Just joking - Tate's loan move to Leeds was the right decision for everyone involved and he is welcome back at any time.

Out of all these players, can we really be that bitter? The answer is no. They all helped Swansea get to where they are today in one way or another, and their exit made room for an even better successor to come in. Still, there should be no guilt in smiling at their misfortune.


This post was kindly sponsored by XLSMedical.co.uk