Matt Grimes joins Coventry City as star explains 'difficult' decision to leave Swansea City
Swansea City skipper Matt Grimes has signed for Championship rivals Coventry City, admitting the decision to leave was "really difficult".
The midfielder brings an end to a 10-year spell in SA1, with the 29-year-old signing a three-and-a-half year deal with the CBS Arena side.
The two clubs are believed to have agreed a fee for the Exeter City product in the region of £3.5million to £4million. Sign up to our Swansea City newsletter here.
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Grimes, who completed his medical yesterday, is now expected to become one of the Sky Blues' highest earners under boss Frank Lampard.
Upon signing, Grimes admitted the decision to walk away was tough.
He said: “It’s moved really quickly, but once I heard of the interest and had conversations with all my family and weighing things up, it felt like the right thing to do and I’m just so happy now it’s done.
“It was a difficult decision. I’ve been at Swansea for a long time, and I’ve got a good relationship with everyone at the club and the manager there is fantastic, and he is a great guy and a top manager, so to walk away from that was really difficult, but I think that speaks volumes of what is going on here that I’ve walked away from to be part of this project.
“I will always hold fond memories in my heart of Swansea, and I’ve raised three children there, but this is home now, and I can’t wait to get started.”
Speaking about Coventry specifically, he added: “I’m really happy to be here. It happened so quickly. It’s a club with massive ambitions and I got that after speaking with Dean (Austin), the head coach and the chairman.
“I brought into this project purely because of the ambition and where I see this club going. It’s a team on the rise and I’m happy to be here and be a part of this project.”
Grimes said farewell to his former team-mates earlier on this week, with Swansea confirming on Thursday that their captain had signalled his intention to leave and that they had accepted a bid from a Championship club.
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"Swansea City has accepted a bid from a Championship club for the transfer of Matt Grimes," the club wrote in a statement.
"Following discussions, Matt Grimes expressed his desire to move on and the club has respected his wishes."
In a post on Friday evening, Swansea said: "Swansea City can confirm the departure of former captain, Matt Grimes, who has joined Coventry City for an undisclosed fee, subject to international clearance.
"Grimes has been an important player for the Swans since his arrival from Exeter City in 2015, making 333 appearances in total.
"During his time he made significant contributions, including performances in the Premier League and consistent displays in the Championship.
"His dedication saw him miss just four Championship fixtures over six-and-a-half seasons. He was named club captain in 2019."
Coincidentally, Swansea host the Sky Blues tomorrow.
