Swansea City defender Jordi Amat has been enjoying a successful loan spell back in his home country at La Liga outfit Real Betis, and we were keen to get in touch with some fans to understand how he’s been performing this year.
Amat joined the likes of Jefferson Montero and Borja Baston as they went out on season-long loans in search of first-team football.
The 26-year-old joined the Swans back in 2013 when Michael Laudrup was manager and made 30 appearances in all competitions, including 14 starts in the Premier League. Injuries held him back under Garry Monk the following season after making a strong start, but an injury at Chelsea meant he was out of the team for almost six months. Injuries continued to hold him back and once again, injuries – this time right at the very start of the season kept him out of action, meaning it was always tough to get game time when a centre-back duo had already been established, usually Ashley Williams and Federico Fernandez.
“he’s proven in important games that he can handle the task at hand and that he’s a player that can perform.”
In 2016/17, Amat was back in the side, filling the hole left behind by then-skipper Ashley Williams who joined Everton in a £12m move. But following Guidolin’s sacking and Bob Bradley’s appointment, big, glaring mistakes crept into his game, and he was soon dropped to the bench when Paul Clement arrived. His only start under Clement was away at Hull City when he had to fill in at right back.
Seemingly, Clement wasn’t a fan of the Spaniard and he was sent out on a season-long loan at 5th placed La Liga side Real Betis. He’s one of the few loaned out players who’s been a success; a regular starter after a slow start to the season, he’s part of a defensive unit who are on a run of 6 consecutive clean-sheets and 7 unbeaten – winning six.
With thanks to Josh Kilmister (@joshkilmister) – we were able to get in touch with some Real Betis fans, who gave us their thoughts on Amat’s performances this season:
“Amat only has a year left in his contract at Swansea, and he’s been quoted saying in Spanish media that he’s going to have to negotiate once he’s back at Swansea this summer so everyone thinks and kind of hopes that he’ll try to come back, I welcome it since it only adds more depth to our defense which is already solid I think.”
“He’s definitely flourished and stepped up to the plate since taking Feddal’s spot after his injury, I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s comfortable and happy in Seville right now.”
“In terms of his performance, I can’t really speak much for it as it shows with the whole team and Quique Setién this season, he’s seemed more confident on the pitch since the first half of the season and it definitely shows, Betis are more than likely placing 5th this season which is super exciting considering we’ve been relegated and promoted since the last time we played in Europe.” – Dan Calderon
Dan also sent us a useful link to an article about Amat’s future and whether or not he could stay at Real Betis next season. Amat was quoted in the article saying:
“I am on loan for a year, I am very happy to have the chance to continue playing and in the summer I will have to talk and negotiate, I have one year left in Swansea.” – Jordi Amat
Despite making some “big mistakes” this season, Jaime Ramirez believes Betis should look to sign him in the Summer:
“He’s a pretty standard player considering that he doesn’t always played to his full capacities but he’s proven in important games that he can handle the task at hand and that he’s a player that can perform. Betis hasn’t conceded a goal in their past 6 games, in my belief thanks to a fantastic defense that he’s been a part of towards the latter end of the season. However, he still doesn’t compare in defensive quality against other players like Marc Bartra. Amat has also made some big mistakes during matches in which we’ve lost, but I think he should be pursued next year to keep with the squad’s consistency.” – Jaime Ramirez
Another fan, Antonio Serna also spoke about his earlier mistakes in the season during a poor run of form and says he has “adapted really well to the new system”, as they switched to a back three.
“During the first half of the season, Amat didn’t start because our main two centre back options were Feddal and Mandi, but when Feddal got injured Amat was unable to step up to the plate and we lost 6 consecutive games with him in defense, some of which were his fault due to some important mistakes.
But in the second half of the season we signed Barta and started playing 3 in the back, and when Feddal got injured again, Amat started getting playing time once again and has adapted really well to the new system.
We haven’t lost our past 7 games and have kept a clean sheet for the past 6. Whether or not we try and pursue him in the next transfer window depends whether or not we field two or three center backs in our formation next season, so it depends on what Setien’s vision for our defense next season is.” – Antonio Serna
Jordi Amat has some big decisions to make in the Summer over his future. Whilst he’s not guaranteed a starting place here in South Wales, he’s not at Real Betis either having made the starting eleven after injuries to Feddal and Mandi.
However, this is the most football that he has played in a single season since 2012/13 when he was playing for Rayo Vallecano on loan, and he may well be tempted to stay in his home country.
Betis may benefit as well due to the player’s contract expiring in June 2019. The Swans could be tempted to sell him this year to avoid losing him on a free, but on the other hand, they could risk losing Alfie Mawson in the Summer, so might they offer Amat a new contract to stay?
Thank you to Josh, Dan, Jaime and Antonio for helping us put this article together and providing an insight into Jordi Amat’s season so far at Real Betis.
