Swansea City: Matt Grimes transfer silence offers hope to Swans - View | OneFootball

Matt Grimes hasn't been linked with a move away from Swansea recently and this will be music to the ears of supporters

Since Swansea City's relegation to the Championship in 2018, plenty of players and managers have come and gone, but one man in particular has remained loyal to the cause.

Captain Matt Grimes has been ever present in Swansea's starting XI since the summer of 2018, and despite being a fringe figure who looked set to exit the club prior to the Swans' relegation, he has turned his career around and is now a modern-day club legend.

Thanks to his consistent performances for the Swans, Grimes has previously been linked with moves away from south Wales, but a departure has never materialised, and he's set to make it a decade at the club in January next year.

So far this summer, Grimes is yet to be linked with a move away, and Swansea fans will be hoping long may that continues.

Given his consistent standout performances for Swansea, plenty of outsiders will be wondering why Grimes isn't playing in the top-flight, or at least a Championship club in the mix for promotion, but he hasn't been short of interest in the past.

In the summer of 2020, Watford, who had just been relegated to the Championship, were linked with a move for Swansea's skipper, according to Wales Online, and there was further interest the following summer.

With Swansea losing the play-off final in 2021, Steve Cooper leaving and Grimes' contract ending in 2022, it looked as if the midfielder's time at the club would come to an end in the summer of 2021, and there was Premier League interest in the former Exeter City man.

Newcastle United and Southampton were interested in signing Grimes, according to The Chronicle, whilst Football Insider reported that Fulham and Brighton wanted to sign the Swansea man.

However, Grimes remained loyal and penned a new deal with the Swans that summer, but it hasn't stopped more transfer interest since.

Just last summer, it was reported that Southampton were yet again keen to move for Grimes, with Russell Martin keen to reunite with the player. Despite this interest, the midfielder signed another new deal with Swans, keeping him in SA1 until 2027.

This has meant that, so far, Grimes is yet to attract any transfer interest this summer, and Swansea will be hoping it stays that way for the foreseeable future.

Matt Grimes is so important to Swansea City

Swansea have had five permanent managers since their relegation to the Championship, and all five have built the team around Grimes - showing just how important he is.

Not only is the midfielder a quality player, but he's always available and is nearly never injured or suspended, making him a manager's dream.

Since Swansea's relegation in 2018, they have played 230 Championship league games, and incredibly, Grimes has missed just four.

One came during the 2018/19 season where he was left on the bench for a game against Leeds, he was also left on the bench by Steve Cooper for a game during the 2020/21 season as he looked to rotate his squad, and the other two came during the 2022/23 season.

Grimes is Swansea's most important player, there's absolutely no doubt about it, and being able to keep him at the club will be absolutely huge for Luke Williams.

The midfielder played all 46 of Swansea's league games again last season, playing every minute, and had they not had him, they almost certainly wouldn't have finished 14th and could have been dragged into a relegation battle.

Bizarrely, there are some sections of Swansea's support that think Grimes is overrated and that he doesn't do enough, which is absurd when you see just how highly-rated he's been by every manager, and the stature of clubs interested in him previously.

Signing a new deal with the club last summer indicates that, despite the noise, Grimes is more than happy at Swansea City, and it's clear that his young family love life in the city too.

After plenty of interest in him previously, perhaps clubs have realised that the 28-year-old is happy where he is, and there's been no sign of any interested parties so far this summer.

It's early days in the transfer window so far, but Swansea will be hoping interest remains quiet in the coming months. Grimes is Swansea's best player, and keeping him at the Swansea.com Stadium is so important.