Swansea City vs Southampton - Jordan Ayew on brink of joining Swansea from Aston Villa

Posted Tuesday, January 31, 2017 by PA

Swansea are set to sign Aston Villa midfielder Jordan Ayew with defender Neil Taylor moving in the opposite direction.

The deal will also see Villa receive a fee which could rise up to B£5million, Press Association Sport understands.

"It is not done yet, but it is close to being done," Swansea manager Paul Clement said of the swap deal.

"Neil has been a great servant to this club, but I feel it is the right time for a new challenge for him and he would like to take it."

Wales full-back Taylor joined from Wrexham in the summer of 2010 and was part of the side that won promotion to the Premier League the following year.

The 27-year-old made nearly 180 appearances for Swansea and helped Wales reach the semi-finals of Euro 2016.

Ayew was linked with Swansea last season when his brother, Andre, was at the Liberty Stadium before joining West Ham in a record B#20.5million move.

The 25-year-old is currently away with Ghana at the African Nations Cup in Gabon but Swansea can complete the deal as Ayew recently completed a medical with the Football Association for insurance purposes.

Clement said: "We brought (Martin) Olsson in from Norwich so we had three left-backs and I only need two.

"And we get a young offensive talent who will add to what we have.

"Ayew can play wide or through the middle and I like that versatility.

"Things change, but my feeling at this point is that when the Ayew deal is done that will be it. I am confident we are wrapped up on everything."

Clement is grateful for that with Swansea hosting Southampton in the Premier League in the final hours of the January transfer window on Tuesday night.

Swansea climbed out of the bottom three by winning 3-2 at Liverpool in their last game and will be seeking to build on that shock Anfield triumph.

"It's not ideal to play on this night - you have to confirm your squad for the game and people can come in and go out at short notice - but we are fully focused on the game," Clement said.

"We cannot waste what we did at Liverpool, these are the games we have to do well in.

"We have to be better at home. Away results, especially against the big sides, are bonuses.

"Our home form must be far more consistent."

Luciano Narsingh is available to make his Swansea debut after recovering from the calf problem which has troubled him since his B£4million move from PSV Eindhoven.

Ki Sung-yueng returns to the squad after a calf problem, but Leon Britton and Oliver McBurnie are both unavailable.

Claude Puel has once again defended his decision to make wholesale changes in the FA Cup - insisting his Southampton side would have been unable to face Swansea on Tuesday if he had not done so.

Saints were hammered 5-0 by Arsenal on Saturday after Puel opted to make 10 alterations for the fourth-round meeting with the Gunners.

The fixture came on the back of Southampton securing their place in the EFL Cup final with a victory at Liverpool and with Premier League games against the Swans and West Ham this week.

A 3-0 win over champions Leicester remains Southampton's only league win of 2017, but Puel is fighting on despite missing a host of first-team regulars.

The Frenchman was defiant after the heavy defeat in the FA Cup, stating he would name the same team if he was given the chance to rethink his line-up.

And he went further when previewing Southampton's trip to struggling Swansea as he declared he was protecting his players from burn-out following a hectic schedule.

"I prefer not to comment on all the injuries but for tomorrow we have between eight and 10 players not available," he told reporters at his pre-match press conference.

"It is a lot but it is the fault of the calendar for us, with all these games it is difficult and if I didn't protect some players against Arsenal we could not play this game against Swansea or the next against West Ham.

"I had to do a choice against Arsenal but it was important to do this with all of the injuries and in this difficult moment for us."

Southampton will still be without Virgil van Dijk at the Liberty Stadium due to an ankle injury, while the likes of James Ward-Prowse, Jay Rodriguez, Charlie Austin, Jeremy Pied, Matt Targett and Alex McCarthy are all expected to be absent.