Swansea City struck gold with loan deal, but Roberto Martinez and Wigan Athletic had the last laugh | OneFootball

Jordi Gomez enjoyed a fruitful loan spell with Swansea City, but it was Wigan Athletic and Roberto Martinez who benefited from it

Swansea City's promotion to the Championship in 2008 provided Roberto Martinez with the chance to strengthen his side, and he certainly made the most of it when he brought Espanyol midfielder Jordi Gomez to the club on a season-long loan.

Gomez was an unknown quantity to Swansea City supporters and the rest of the Championship, but it became clear early during his time in SA1 that he was a quality player and a real coup for a second tier side.

The Spaniard had once been on the books of FC Barcelona and was a graduate of their famous La Masia academy, and it was easy to tell that during his performances for Swansea throughout the 2008/09 campaign.

In the summer of 2009, Gomez departed Swansea upon the expiry of his loan deal but would remain in English football when he signed permanently for Premier League outfit Wigan Athletic, a move which would prove difficult to take for the Jack Army.

Jordi Gomez was a class act for Swansea City

Swansea's promotion to the Championship in 2008 meant it was the first time in over 20 years that they'd played in the second tier, and despite their performances in League One the previous season, it was clear they needed reinforcements.

The likes of Mark Gower, Gorka Pintado, Albert Serran and Federico Bessone were brought in alongside Gomez, but it was the Espanyol loanee who made the biggest impact at the Swansea.com Stadium.

Gomez was used from the bench for Swansea's first couple of league games before a third-round League Cup tie against Cardiff City on the 23rd September changed his fortunes and made him an immediate cult-hero in SA1.

It was the first meeting between the two bitter rivals in nine years, and with the scores level at 0-0 and chances at a premium, Gomez stepped up to score the only goal of the game when his deflected free-kick beat Peter Enckelman in the Bluebirds' net, sparking delirious scenes amongst the Jack Army.

The Spaniard didn't look back after that and became a mainstay in the Swans' starting XI for the rest of the Championship season, helping the Swans enjoy a successful campaign on their return to the second tier as they finished eighth and reached the fifth-round of the FA Cup after defeating holders Portsmouth at Fratton Park.

It was clear that Gomez was too good to be playing in the Championship, and his 14 goals and seven assists in 51 appearances across all competitions meant it was only a matter of time until Premier League clubs began to circle.

Martinez told BBC Sport that it would be hard to stop star players like Gomez being lured to the Premier League, and so it proved when his loan deal expired in South Wales in the summer of 2009.

Gomez is fondly remembered by Swansea supporters thanks to the impact he made and his derby day exploits, but what followed that summer may have left a sour taste.

Roberto Martinez and Wigan Athletic had last laugh with Jordi Gomez

After such a successful spell with Swansea, Martinez was attracting interest from Premier League clubs, and he broke Swansea's hearts when he left the club for Wigan Athletic in the summer of 2009 and worse was to come.

Not only did the Swans lose their manager, but Wigan's Premier League status meant that Martinez was able to bring Gomez to the club on a permanent basis, a real body blow to Swansea, who would have been keen to sign the Spaniard that summer.

Martinez also signed Swansea's top scorer Jason Scotland, meaning that the Swans lost their manager and two best players to Wigan that summer, so it's fair to say that the Latics weren't too popular amongst the Jack Army in 2009.

As for Gomez, he spent five years with Wigan during his first spell at the club, moving to Sunderland in 2014, before returning to the Latics in 2016 for a season, taking his total tally of appearances to 178, scoring 31 times and registering 19 assists.

Martinez had long gone from Wigan when Gomez returned in 2016, but it's clear that the club had a special place in his heart, and the 178 appearances he made for the Latics is more than he made for any other club.

Had Martinez remained at Swansea in 2009, then their chances of signing Gomez on a permanent basis would surely have improved, and while the Swans enjoyed plenty of success in the years that followed, supporters will surely regret seeing the Spaniard leave South Wales after just one season.