Swansea City got the better of eight-figure Fulham deal: View | OneFootball

Alfie Mawson had an impressive spell with Swansea City from 2016 to 2018, earning him a huge move to Fulham following the Swans' relegation from the Premier League.

While he saw his side fail to beat the drop, the English defender was one of the key players for the South Wales side that season. He impressed for the club since joining from Barnsley two years prior, becoming one of the highlights in a poor Swans side.

In his two seasons at the club, Mawson played 65 times in the Premier League for Swansea. This included playing every minute in their final year in the top flight, which was enough to impress England manager Gareth Southgate and earn a call-up to the national side.

Despite his impressive performances, the Swans suffered relegation back to the Championship after seven years, meaning that a number of their top players needed to be sold in the summer following.

Mawson joined Fulham after Swansea's relegation

Mawson was excellent during the club's last year in the Premier League, earning himself a move straight back to the Premier League.

Fulham paid a reported £15 million fee for the centre-back, which at the time was one of the highest fees the club had ever paid for a player.

Having recently been promoted to the Premier League, the club brought in Mawson to try and avoid relegation straight back down, despite him being relegated with Swansea the year prior.

Despite starting every game for Swansea in their last Premier League season, Mawson missed the beginning of the campaign for Fulham, in what would be the beginning of a recurring knee problem that would blight his time at Craven Cottage.

While he did manage 13 starts in his debut season, an injury just after Christmas 2018 forced him to miss the majority of the campaign. Losing one of their most expensive signings was a huge loss for the Cottagers, and they were eventually relegated back down to the Championship.

This meant Mawson had back-to-back relegations under his belt, although many would have hoped that a drop-down to the second tier could help him regain his fitness and his confidence in a less pressured environment.

The Englishman did manage this, playing every single match for Fulham up until January, before another knee injury effectively ended his career at Craven Cottage. He played just 52 matches in four years at the club, less than he played in half the time at Swansea.

Alfie Mawson's later career

Sadly, Mawson suffered some major injury issues after moving to Fulham, which eventually ended his career in football. While he has had trouble with his knees since he was 18, his consistency at Swansea made him look like he'd turned a corner, but sadly, that was not to be.

After struggling with his fitness at Fulham, the former Swansea star went out on loan to Bristol City. Sadly, injuries to both his knees saw him limited to just 11 league matches for the Robins in a disappointing spell at the club.

The Englishman left Fulham when his contract expired in 2022, joining Wycombe Wanderers on a free transfer. This would be his final club, as injuries continued to impede his ability to play football regularly, even as he dropped down the divisions to try and salvage his career.

During his sole season in League One with the Blues, Mawson played just 20 times in the league. While he managed a consistent run of games up until Christmas, Mawson was soon struck down by a knee injury once again.

In 2023, Mawson announced his retirement from football. Despite being rated highly early on in his career, injuries took a big toll on him. Doctors warned him that he should never even run again, which meant that his career in football was sadly over at the age of just 29.

While nobody is pleased to see a promising young player's career ravaged by injuries, Swansea will certainly be feeling better than Fulham about the transfer of Mawson in 2018.

Mawson played his best football in South Wales, and the injuries did not take their toll until he moved to Fulham in the summer of 2018. Swansea sold the defender at exactly the right time, while his value was maximized and the extent of his knee issues were not known.