‘I wanted to come home’: John Swift reveals motivations for Portsmouth move after former Chelsea man’s West Brom exit
The Gosport lad is back at Pompey, with the former Reading, West Brom and Chelsea explaining his motivations for his coming ‘back home’.
John Swift revealed his family’s influence on his Pompey homecoming.
But the Gosport lad insisted it was the Fratton factor which was the defining factor on his return to PO4.
Swift: Family and Fratton factors
Swift geared up competitive debut in the Championship at Oxford United next weekend with his latest pre-season in the 1-0 win over Dutch side PEC Zwolle on Saturday.
The 30-year-old is now gaining momentum following his arrival at PO4, after leaving West Brom this summer
Swift had a stack of options after becoming a free agent with other Championship sides keen, as well as interest from Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Scotland and MLS.
But Pompey held the appeal for the former Brune Park Community College pupil, who also spent time in the club’s academy, as he revealed how the move unfolded.
Swift said: ‘To be honest, come the end of my contract at West Brom I knew maybe a month or so before that it was the end and I wasn’t going to get a contract.‘Straightaway Portsmouth were interested, but like anytime you come to end of your contract somewhere you almost have to wait until the season finishes.
‘So I started speaking to clubs when the season finished and Portsmouth were always interested through the whole of the off season.
‘The pre-season started, I gave it two weeks and then I decided I wanted to come back home.
‘I met the manager, we had a good chat and I understood where he wanted me to play and how he wanted me to fit in.
‘It was exciting and everything about coming back was perfect for me.’
Appeal of playing for Pompey fans highlighted
Swift’s move was influenced by his family, who were keen on the prospect of his return to the area after spending life on the road following his progress at Chelsea, Reading and The Hawthorns.
But it was the prospect of turning out in front of Pompey fans and having the backing of the Fratton Park crowd which proved the ultimate draw for the midfield schemer.
Swift added: ‘As you could probably imagine, the family have been travelling a lot ever since I moved from Gosport when I was 15.
‘So for them to be able to jump on the ferry and come across to watch the game will be nice for them.
‘That was a little bit of my thought process, to be honest, because it’s been hard on them with the travelling.
‘But 99 per cent of the appeal was coming back and playing in front of these great fans at this great stadium with a team who did really well last season.
‘Hopefully we can improve on that now and take the momentum from last season into this season.
‘I turned 30 in the summer and I still want to play in the Championship for as long as possible.
‘This is a great opportunity for me to come home and show what I can do in the Championship.’