Swansea City midfielder Leon Britton: 'The Ice Man' Gylfi Sigurdsson is on fire

9th March

Leon Britton has backed Gylfi Sigurdsson to become Swansea City's all-time top Barclays Premier League scorer by the end of the season.
Sigurdsson struck his eighth league goal of the campaign last weekend - his sixth in his last ten appearances - with his goal proving the difference in a 1-0 win over Norwich City.
Having already surpassed Michu's total of 20 league goals, the Icelandic international sits just three goals short of Wilfried Bony's tally of 25 with nine games remaining this season.
And Britton is confident Sigurdsson, who struck seven goals during a successful loan spell at the Liberty in 2012, will top the lot come the end of May.



"We've not been scoring a lot of goals as a team, but Gylfi's form in front of goal has been brilliant. He's on fire," said Britton.
"Six goals from his last ten games from attacking midfield is a great return. He's played a major part in our recent results.
"Gylfi made a big difference when he came here on loan during our first season in the Premier League. He raised the level of quality.
"He scored some important goals to help us finish 11th, and last season was the same.
"It won't be long before he overtakes Bony as our overall top scorer in the Premier League. I think he could do it before the end of the season."
Sigurdsson lived up to his "Ice man" nickname last Saturday as he coolly slotted home the winner to push the Swans nine points clear of the bottom three clubs.
Britton, who has made over 500 appearances for the Swans, underlined the influence Sigurdsson has had on the team since joining permanently from Tottenham Hotspur in 2014.

Swans' Premier League highest scorers
                            Games/goals
Wilfried Bony         54/25
Gylfi Sigurdsson     79/22
Michu                    52/20

"It's not just his goals as he's set some up with his free-kicks and in general his all-round play is fantastic," said Britton.
"I think the fans appreciate Gylfi's work-rate as much as his team-mates do.
"To close down and press as much as he does is music to the ears of the players behind him.
"He's a team player and so unselfish. Goalscorers are sometimes associated as players who just want to put the ball in the net and not do the other things.
"But Gylfi is the complete opposite. He puts the team first and works very hard. He scores goals but puts the shift in that we need.
"Last Saturday was a tight game and certainly not a classic, but Gylfi is always someone you can rely upon to make the difference.
"He's so calm and cool in that position, and I think it goes down to the extra work he does in training. When we come in from the end of the session, Gylfi is always out there practicing free-kicks and on his finishing.
"That's why you see him score so many goals in the situation he was in last weekend. This is why he's called the Ice Man. You will never see him flustered.
"In a pressure situation like a penalty, free-kick or one-on-one, you would want Gylfi as the man you want to take it."



The Swans travel to Bournemouth on Saturday buoyed by the back-to-back wins over Arsenal and Norwich City.
Currently nine points above the third-bottom Canaries, the Swans could leapfrog Saturday's opponents with victory on the south coast.
And Britton revealed the squad's determination to ensure Premier League safety as soon as possible.
"We have given ourselves a great chance with the last two results," said Britton.
"Beating Arsenal and then Norwich, along with the other teams below us failing to pick up points, is a massive boost to our hopes.
"We have Bournemouth and Aston Villa next up, and we know we could move even closer to safety by picking up points in those games.
"But we know how tough and unpredictable this league is.
"The pressure is still very much on us and we can't afford to take our foot off the pedal.
"We're battling for every single point, and we want to secure safety as soon as possible for the club."
 
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