The American owners of Swansea City have spoken about why they brought in Bob Bradley to replace Francesco Guidolin.
American businessmen Jason Levien (who also co-owns D.C. United in Major League Soccer) and Scott Kaplan completed a takeover of the Swans this summer as they now hold a majority 68 percent share in the Premier League side.
[ MORE: US reacts to Bradley ]
By appointing Bradley many Swansea fans and outsiders believed they’d simply hired and American coach because they are, well, American. Turns out that couldn’t be further from the truth.
[ MORE: What does this mean for American soccer? ]
In an interview with talkSPORT, co-owner Levien revealed that only one factor went into hiring Bradley: his talent as a manager.
“The reason we appointed Bob is not because he’s American but because we believe he’s the best man for the job. Neither Steve nor I had met Bob before we interviewed him last Friday but we did know him by reputation – and he lived up to that high reputation. He is a top class leader, tactically very smart and has the strength of character we believe will make an immediate impact in the dressing room and on the training ground.
“Anybody who knows Bob knows he would only take a job if believed he was getting it on merit, not because we simply wanted another American at the club. We just want the fans to give him a chance and judge him on the job he does, not his accent or passport.”
There’s no doubting that Bradley, 58, will be under the microscope from the very start of his Swansea’s career as local fans continue to feel a little uneasy about their club being owned by American and now their team being managed by one. Swansea is a unique case as in the past the club almost went bust after foreign investors bought and sold the club many times and the Swansea Supporters Trust helped to save the club and still owns 20 percent of the club to this day.
The owners have set the record straight about Bradley. He is not at the Liberty Stadium because he was born in New Jersey. He is Swansea’s new manager because he is a damn good coach. End of.
