. . . for support over two glorious years
Former Swans winger Scott Sinclair has taken time out from his new life at the Etihad Stadium to thank the Swansea City faithful for their support during his time at the Liberty Stadium.
Sinclair completed his deadline day transfer to Manchester City last Friday to bring the curtain down on a highly successful two-year spell in Swans colours.
“I loved my time at Swansea,’’ explained Sinclair. “I enjoyed every minute of it and have some glorious memories, like promotion and a Wembley hat-trick, that will stay with me forever.
“The two years I spent at Swansea were the best of my career so far, there’s no doubt about that.
“I was sad to leave, but I hope the supporters understand the decision I made to join Manchester City.
“I am still young and ambitious to play at the very top. The chance I have been given to play Champions League football with the Premier League title holders was an opportunity I just couldn’t turn down.
“I hope they understand that it was a once in a lifetime opportunity for me. I want to keep developing as a player and I believe it is the right move to do that, even if some people may disagree.
“Swansea will always remain close to my heart though and I wish them every success for the future. It’s the least the supporters deserve. They’ve always been good to me, on and off the field; they’ve always been behind me and I will always appreciate that.
“I hope they feel I’ve played my part in the recent success and, as I said, understand my decision to begin a new challenge.’’
Sinclair joined the Swans at the start of the 2009-10 campaign under former boss Brendan Rodgers in a £500,000 transfer from Chelsea that would eventually rise to around £1.5m due to Swansea’s success.
He played a pivotal role in the Swans’ promotion-winning season with 19 Championship goals – 27 in all competitions - before scoring a memorable hat-trick in the Play-Off final success against Reading at Wembley, earning him a spot in the PFA’s Championship Team of the Year.
The former England Under-21 international and Team GB member scored eight goals last season, including the club’s first in the Premier League, as the Swans finished an impressive 11th.
In his only appearance of the current campaign for the Swans, he came off the bench and scored the final goal in the 5-0 opening-day win over QPR at Loftus Road, taking his final tally to 28 goals in 82 league appearances.