Ashley Williams' departure and Leon Britton's sporadic appearances mean Swansea City's captaincy has started to fall upon Jack Cork.

Signed last January from Southampton, the midfielder's performances last season saw him quickly become a fan favourite and a contender for the armband.

Given the role of vice-captain over the summer, the former Saint admits he is relishing the responsibility.

"It's been amazing," he told the club's official website. "It's something I've not done in my senior career yet, so it's a proud achievement for me."

Cork realises that it's a "big responsibility" for him to take on, especially with Britton having appeared just once in the league so far, but he says it's something he "look[s] forward to" and "enjoy[s]."

Sharing the burden

Something that makes wearing the armband easier for Cork is the fact that there are many natural leaders in Swansea's side.

The midfielder picked out the likes of Angel Rangel, Lukasz Fabianski, Wayne Routledge and Nathan Dyer as players "who are leaders on the pitch and on the training ground," easing the pressure on Cork's shoulders.

"It’s a shared responsibility and everyone has their input on a matchday and in and around the training ground.”

Wayne Routledge wore the captain's armband in pre-season for Swansea. (Photo: Matthew Ashton - AMA/Getty Images)
Wayne Routledge wore the captain's armband in pre-season for Swansea. (Photo: Matthew Ashton - AMA/Getty Images)

Swans out to bounce back

Looking ahead to Sunday's clash with Chelsea, Cork recognises that the fixture sparks "a tough set of games ahead."

Southampton next week is as easy as it gets, with a cup and league double-header against Manchester City following. Liverpool and Arsenal then round off what will be a difficult few weeks for Francesco Guidolin's men.

It doesn't helped that the Swans have only won one of their first three games either.

The first three games were always going to be tough," Cork believes.

Despite opening things with a win at Turf Moor, defeats against Hull City and Leicester City followed, with poor performances to match.

We had a great win at Burnley while against Hull we had a lot of the ball and didn’t take our chances," Cork said. 

Then we went to Leicester, who were chasing their first win, and they showed why they are champions in that performance."

The midfielder is confident that this side can returning to winning ways though against Chelsea. 

The Swans beat the Blues at the back end of last season too, and so will head into tomorrow's game with great confidence.

We need to keep a good shape and work to our strengths, and if we do that then we can pick up a good result.” 

VAVEL Logo
About the author
Ameé Ruszkai
Head of the Sunderland, Swansea City and women football sections at VAVEL UK. Email: [email protected]