Swansea City are confident of moving quickly to replace Garry Monk as manager, with Huw Jenkins believed to have already identified the man he wants to appoint to drag the Welsh club clear from the relegation zone. The word inside the Liberty Stadium is that Jenkins, the chairman, is closing in on a manager currently working overseas, with the idea of Brendan Rodgers returning to Swansea regarded as a non-starter at this stage of his career.
Monk was sacked on Wednesday after a damaging run that had seen Swansea win only one of their last 11 league matches and drop to within a point of the relegation zone. Jenkins hinted what was to come when he said on Tuesday that “something needs to change” and the worst kept secret in football was confirmed 24 hours later in a statement on Swansea’s website. Jenkins said the decision was made “very reluctantly and with a heavy heart”.
Pep Clotet, Monk’s assistant manager, and James Beattie, who joined the coaching staff in the summer, will also depart. Monk had only signed a three-year contract in July, after leading Swansea to a club-record eighth-place finish in the Premier League the previous season, and his departure along with Clotet and Beattie will cost Swansea in excess of £3m in compensation.
Swansea have yet to confirm who will take temporary charge of the team at City, but it is understood that Jenkins is giving serious consideration to asking Alan Curtis, who is a member of the backroom staff, to step in for one match, with the chairman certain that Monk’s successor will be in place long before the visit of West Ham United on Sunday week.
Jenkins has an excellent track record – Roberto Martínez, Paulo Sousa, Brendan Rodgers, Michael Laudrup and Monk are the last five managers appointed at the Liberty Stadium – and those close to him say that he has been inundated with calls from people interested in the post but has a name at the top of his list.
Dennis Bergkamp, the Ajax No2, has long been admired, while Gus Poyet, who is currently in charge of AEK Athens, was close to getting the Swansea job in the past. Mark Warburton, the Rangers manager, fits the Swansea template, although he recently pledged his future to the Scottish club amid interest from Fulham. David Moyes seems an unlikely option, with neither party believed to be keen.
Monk’s dismissal represents a sad end to a distinguished Swansea career that began back in 2004, when he joined the club as a player. The 36-year-old captained Swansea in all four divisions and played a crucial part in keeping the club in the Premier League when he took over from Laudrup as manager in February last year.
Swansea’s club-record points haul last season, when they beat Manchester United and Arsenal home and away, enhanced Monk’s reputation, yet their form unravelled this term after a bright start and there has been speculation about the manager’s position for several months. Saturday’s 3-0 defeat at home against Leicester proved to be the final straw for the Swansea board.
