Inside Matt Grimes' Swansea City exit, where they are looking now and an unthinkable scenario
Swansea City are hurtling towards the end of the January transfer window, and to say there's a fair amount to be done would be a gross understatement.
So far, three first-team players have departed and just one has come in, and there are growing concerns this window could end up being the latest in a long line of January disappointments.
That's before you throw in the imminent departure of club captain Matt Grimes.
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His proposed sale has sent a shockwave through the club, who were clearly taken aback by his determination to force a move through, particularly to a side just four points above them in the table. Sign up to our Swansea City newsletter here.
Luke Williams has said there were tentative attempts to try to convince Grimes to stay, but once Swansea learned what Coventry could offer the midfielder in terms of wages, there was never any realistic chance of them competing.
His departure has been greeted with dismay by supporters, and indeed by his colleagues. In fact, the suggestion is it's gone down badly with the rest of the squad.
Insiders who witnessed his farewell at Fairwood on Tuesday have painted the picture of a tense atmosphere within the camp, with some first-team players understood to have been angered by the timing of his exit.
One source claims only three players actually spoke to the outgoing captain before he left.
To lose your skipper midway through the season is always a blow. To do so when you're trying to turn around a run of form that's yielded just one point out of a possible 15 is something else altogether.
But while it may leave a bitter taste, Swansea have to draw a line under it and move on for the sake of their season.
Williams has already confirmed that Ben Cabango will take the captaincy in the midfielder's absence, but there's clearly a huge hole to fill in terms of bodies.
"We do have a contingency [for Grimes leaving]," Williams said when quizzed on possible replacements. "It's difficult to imagine being able to replace like for like for with Grimes.
"But different and improving quality all over the pitch can still bring us a to a point where overall we're a stronger group than we were."
Having seen the club shell out a similar amount of money for Swedish under-21s star Melker Widell, some might have concluded he was the most likely candidate to step up as a replacement for the outgoing skipper.
But that deal was in the pipeline long before Grimes' exit, as perhaps evidenced by the agreement to send him back out on loan.
Swansea aren't overly thrilled about having to wait until the summer to bring the 22-year-old into the squad, but felt agreeing to AaB's demands was the only plausible way of ensuring the deal was done, amid fears he could be poached by admirers elsewhere come the end of the season.
While the club perhaps have the cash now for a permanent Grimes replacement, the feeling is they are unlikely to find a player of his quality for a reasonable price at this stage of the window.
Instead, the club are likely to use the money to fund a loan from the Premier League, perhaps even two, with both experienced and up-and-coming youngsters understood to be under consideration.
The club were already looking at strengthening options before this news broke, particularly in the number 10 role and out wide, with both loans and permanent deals on the table.
Lorient winger Joel Mvuka is one of the latest to be mentioned, having been on Swansea's radar since last April.
It's understood there is some interest there, but a deal is seen as difficult to do with the French side reluctant to sanction a sale.
Luke Cundle was a name on Swansea's list, but was seemingly never seen as a serious target. In any case, he now looks set to join Millwall in a permanent move. Bobby Clark and Adam Phillips have also been tipped as potential options.
Meanwhile, there's some interest in Leyton Orient star Ethan Galbraith, but Swansea currently view him as a potential option for the summer.
Versatile defender Timothy Fosu-Mensah is similarly not viewed as a pressing target at this time.
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Despite the capture of Hannes Delcroix, it's understood there is still some flickering signs of life in their pursuit of Joe Low, despite the tough stance taken by Wycombe Wanderers, who are determined to keep their star defender on board.
Even so, Swansea appear content with their current defensive options, although clearly there's time for that to change.
The speculation around Harry Darling certainly won't have been welcomed by anyone in SA1, with Sheffield United the latest to be linked with a move for the centre-back, who's out of contract at the end of the season.
The club are understood to still be talking to Darling's representatives over a possible extension, but a breakthrough remains elusive - and that means there is still plenty of uncertainty around his future.
"A player of Harry's quality, of course, there's going to be speculation all the time," Williams added. "But to my knowledge there's been no contact from anyone. So as far as I'm concerned Harry's staying with us until at least the end of the season.
"I work in football so you can expect anything to happen. But genuinely I've heard nothing at all substantial about an exit at all."
With everything that's already happened, losing Darling is frankly unthinkable in a window many have already written off as a disappointment.
Those assessments are understandable. After all, Andy Coleman himself once said that the sign of a good window was one where Swansea ended it stronger than when they started. At the moment, it's hard to see how that happens, particularly after losing someone of Grimes' calibre.
"I do think it's possible," Williams insisted. "I do think it's more challenging because you just lost an extremely good Championship player. There's no denying that.
"So it's more challenging, but I do think it's possible. I really do."
