Jamie Vardy is set for his 13th consecutive season at Leicester City after signing a new one-year deal at the King Power Stadium, and the 37-year-old will be looking to write another chapter in what’s been an incredible career with the Foxes.
Vardy has won the Premier League, the FA Cup, two Championship titles, and played in all three major European competitions during his time at the club, and his move from Fleetwood Town to Leicester City in the summer of 2012 has gone down in folklore.
However, it could have been all so different for Vardy had Swansea chosen to sign him in 2012 when they were offered the striker for just £800,000.
Swansea’s loss was certainly Leicester’s gain, and 12 years on, the former non-league star is still going strong in the East Midlands.
Swansea City will have huge Jamie Vardy regret
After being released by Sheffield Wednesday as a youngster, Vardy had to do it the hard way to make it as a professional footballer, and he played for the likes of Stocksbridge Park Steels and Halifax Town, before earning a move to National League side Fleetwood Town in 2011.
The striker spent just one season at Fleetwood, where he scored 34 goals and registered 17 assists in 40 appearances, helping the Fishermen win the Conference title and promotion to the Football League.
Fleetwood realised they had a huge asset on their hands, and looked to cash in on the goalscorer, and Vardy was reportedly offered to Swansea City for a fee of just £800,000 prior to his move to Leicester, a deal which the Swans turned down.
The summer of 2012 saw Michael Laudrup take over as Swansea boss, and he signed Spanish striker Michu to compliment the club’s already stacked striker department, with the likes of Danny Graham, Leroy Lita, Luke Moore, Stephen Dobbie, Rory Donnelly and Itay Shechter all on the club’s books at some point during the 2012/13 campaign.
With that in mind, it’s perhaps understandable why Swansea felt there was no need to take a punt on a non-league striker for £800,000, but in hindsight it’s surely a decision that the Swans’ hierarchy will regret.
Had Vardy signed, he’d have likely struggled for regular playing time in SA1 initially, but he could have been loaned out, and by the time the 2013/14 season rolled around, the likes of Graham, Moore, Dobbie and Shecter all mentioned above had departed, meaning there could have been opportunities for the former non-league striker.
There’s no guarantee that Vardy would have been anywhere near as successful at Swansea as he has been at Leicester, but turning down the chance to sign him for such a meagre fee will be a huge regret in hindsight.
Jamie Vardy is still doing it at the highest level for Leicester City
Despite now being 37, Vardy is set for another season in the Premier League, while Swansea have been a mid-table Championship club in recent seasons, only helping to rub salt in the Welsh club’s wounds.
The striker was part of a title-winning side at Leicester City last season as the Foxes made an immediate return to the Premier League, and while Vardy wasn’t a regular starter, he still found the back of the net on 18 occasions in the Championship, which is double what Swansea’s top scorer managed.
| Jamie Vardy’s senior career – Transfermarkt | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Club | Season(s) | Appearances | Goals |
| Stocksbridge Park Steels | 2006-10 | 115 | 55 |
| Halifax Town | 2010-11 | 41 | 28 |
| Fleetwood Town | 2011-12 | 40 | 34 |
| Leicester City | 2012- | 464 | 190 |
Despite being unable to start week-in week-out like he used to, the 37-year-old is still a good option from the bench, and still knows where the back of the net is – hence being given a new one-year deal at Leicester following their promotion to the Premier League.
Swansea City supporters will just have to sit back and watch as Vardy returns to the top-flight next season, knowing that had the club made a different decision 12 years ago, things could have been all so different.