Laudrup dismisses Villa to Swansea links

Laudrup dismisses Villa to Swansea speculation

27-Dec-2012 2:30:00 PM

The 48-year-old boss moved to play down any talk linking the club with a move for the Barcelona star, instead tipping him to stay put at the Camp Nou in January

Swansea manager Michael Laudrup has denied that the club are close to clinching the signing of Barcelona forward David Villa.

The 48-year-old enjoyed an illustrious playing career, including five years at the current Spanish league leaders between 1989-1994, and since replacing Brendan Rodgers at the helm in the summer, the Spanish influence at the club has increased, with Michu, Pablo Hernandez and Chico Flores all moving to the Liberty Stadium.

Nevertheless, despite Villa being repeatedly linked with a move away during the upcoming January transfer window, Laudrup has cooled talk that the World Cup winner will be heading for South Wales in the near future.

"There have been a lot of rumours, but the only Villa coming to Swansea is Aston Villa," Laudrup told reporters.

"He is a fantastic player, but unfortunately I don’t think he will be coming to Swansea.

"In fact, although I haven't spoken to [Andoni] Zubizarreta or [Tito] Vilanova, I think he will stay at Barcelona."

The Welsh club have settled well in their second full season in the top flight despite a managerial change in the summer and currently occupy ninth place in the league table, facing a trip to an out-of-sorts Fulham side at Craven Cottage on December 29 up next.