'I can't thank them enough'

Oli McBurnie says he cannot thank Wayne Routledge and Nathan Dyer enough for the impact they have had on his fledgling Swansea City career.

And the Swans’ leading scorer has hailed the duo’s impact at Brentford last weekend, suggesting the two wise widemen were key to their team’s 3-2 win.

Routledge had not played since October 2 while Dyer had not seen first-team action in two-and-a-half months before the Swans went to Griffin Park.

But having been thrown back into the starting side by Graham Potter, Routledge and Dyer both made their mark as the Swans ended a three-game losing streak.

And McBurnie says the success of the two senior pros put a smile on his face.

“Everyone knows how much quality Wayne and Nathan have,” the striker said.

“They showed it last Saturday and I was buzzing for both of them.

“When you have two players with the experience and quality they have, they don’t come into the side and not do anything.

“It was refreshing for the team to have their fresh legs and energy – they were almost like new players.

“They played like they were young lads making their debuts, and that just shows what professionals they are.

“When we conceded the goals the first people speaking were Wayne and Nath.

“They said get on the ball, relax and slow the game down. You need that.

“You can’t buy that experience. Even having them in training when they are not playing, they are top guys and top professionals.

“All they bring is positives to the team and the win last Saturday was down to them.”

At 22, McBurnie is playing his first full season of senior football.

Things are going well for the former Bradford youngster, who will aim to add his tally of eight goals when the Swans host Sheffield Wednesday on Saturday (3pm).

It was Routledge who found the target to set Potter’s men on the path to victory at Brentford, while Dyer’s cross led to the Chris Mepham own goal which doubled their lead.

And McBurnie was delighted to see two of his mentors have such an influence on the team.

“Wayne is such a good guy,” McBurnie added.

“He has helped so much since I came into the first-team squad.

“He is like a big brother to me. He tells me off when I need telling off, but he also sees if I am having a down day and pulls me to the side to lift me up.

“It was like seeing my big brother score a goal when he put us in front last week.

“Nath has helped me a lot too. I will never be able to thank the two of them enough for the impact they have had on me.”