Argentinian Fernandez comes in to fill the void left by Chico's departure
Bienvenido Federico! Swansea have today announced the signing of Federico Fernandez from Napoli for a fee believed to be around seven or eight million, and it's hard to see how that doesn't make us stronger at centre-back than we ever have been. Our centre-back options now include an international captain who's fast on his way to becoming a club legend, a World Cup runner-up, a Spanish under-21 international and a player who spent his youth career learning his trade at Arsenal. Not bad at all!
For his part Fede clearly did a bit of homework before agreeing to the second biggest transfer in Swansea's history (after Bony's £12million capture last summer), and spoke to Michu, Jordi Amat & Alvaro Vazquez before signing on the dotted line. I'd be interested to hear what Alvaro had to say!
"It has always been my dream to play in the Premier League - it is the best in the world - and I'm grateful to Swansea for giving me this opportunity. I asked Michu and Jordi Amat about the club. I obviously trained with Michu at Napoli, and while I was on loan at Getafe [in 2013] I played with Alvaro Vazquez. He is very good friends with Jordi, so I've spoken to them too.
"Michu told me it is a family club and the city is very relaxed. He said I was joining a very good club. All I've heard are good things about Swansea. I can identify myself with the Swansea style. I like to play the ball from the back and, of course, I love to defend too.
"I was impressed last weekend with the team's performance and result against Manchester United. It was a very intelligent performance. The team really took its opportunities, and it was a fantastic start to the season. I just can't wait to start training and playing games." Federico Fernandez
https://www.clubcall.com/swansea-city/swans-style-suited-me---fernandez-1737028.html
I'm sure I speak for every Swansea City fan when I say "Welcome to Swansea City!". I have no doubt he's a quality player and from the little I saw of him at the World Cup he looked a very tidy defender. He played regularly in Serie A last season and at twenty-five he's most definitely still got room to improve. A very exciting - and important - signing indeed.
How quickly he forces his way into the team remains to be seen, however, as he's almost certain to be behind the rest of the squad in terms of match fitness. Burnley this weekend may perhaps be unrealistic, with the next home game against West Brom possibly being earmarked.
Either way his acquisition is huge for the Swans. It's a statement that we're able to attract top players, and we're undoubtedly now better off at centre-back than we were last season. It's turning into a very good summer of transfer business for the Swans indeed.