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BARRY LANDY

With Laudrup gone, Swansea put faith in Jenkins’ appointment track record

A shock to those outside of the Swansea City circle, Michael Laudrup’s parting of ways with Swansea caught many people on the hop.

Those who are familiar with the machinations of the South Wales side however, will have seen this coming for some time. A club whose seemingly solid foundations have been assembled on building blocks going back to their escape from Football League relegation in 2003, were displaying little evidence of stability and harmony.

Piece by piece, the wall of invincibility that has pedestaled Swansea’s managers in high regard – read Jackett, Martinez, Sousa, Rodgers and for the most part Laudrup – had begun to crumble of late.

Perhaps that’s where Spanish defender Chico Flores picked up the brick he allegedly brandished in a training ground argument with teammate Garry Monk two weeks ago.

A number of listless performances of late, culminating in just one in the last ten games and just eight wins in 35 league games since their Capital One Cup triumph at Wembley seem to paint the latter part of the Dane’s admittedly short reign in a straightforward light.

His sacking, and it is just that regardless of phraseology, is reminiscent of Steve Clarke’s removal at West Bromwich Albion in that that appears to be no consensus of public opinion on the decision. Laudrup’s calendar year record is being used as a stick with which to beat him, but ultimately that means little.

The pros are obvious. In his 19 months in charge, he brought a first ever major trophy to the Liberty Stadium, the signing of the 2012/13 campaign in Michu and a high profile Spanish international in Pablo Hernandez too.

A world away from a Division Four relegation decider against Exeter City a decade ago. But there’s more to meets the eye with Laudrup. Certainly, more than mere results, good or bad, have provoked his removal at Swansea.

Rumours gathered pace last summer that his agent, Bayram Tutumlu’s growing influence on transfer policy irked chairman Huw Jenkins. There were murmurings too that some players were disillusioned with Laudrup’s laid back approach in training and on the sideline.

In the face of this apathy, why would Jenkins relinquish control in transfers, essentially expenditure, to a Laudrup ally? What the Dane failed to countenance was, while his chairman had no recent

record of sacking managers, his ability to pick a new man to build on what has gone before is unblemished.

When Wigan took Martinez, Sousa was brought in. His impressive season in charge led promotion chasing Leicester to their door. As they then struggled, Swansea’s new man Brendan Rodgers brought play-off success and Premier League safety.

Laudrup will have his suitors, but hardly on his terms. In an interview he gave to The Guardian in August 2012, the former Real Mallorca boss said the short life span afforded to managers at top cubs was “no life.”

That was amid talk that big clubs may come calling should his time at Swansea be a success. He said he would stay at a club, no matter the size, until he could improve them no more. That’s probably the case in South Wales, but an ignominious ending will cast doubt over his credentials.

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Barney RonayThe Guardian

Michael Laudrup parted company with Swansea