Clement says Renato Sanches 'more damaged than I thought'
Former Swansea manager Paul Clement has described Renato Sanches, who he signed on a season-long loan from Bayern Munich, as 'damaged' and claims he was under pressure from other players in the squad to drop the Portugal star.
Clement, who was sacked by Swansea in December, said Sanches initially expected to leave Bayern for another elite European club but when he arrived in Wales, was a shadow of the player who lit up Euro 2016 with winners Portugal.
Clement spoke to then Bayern manager Carlo Ancelotti and chief-executive Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, who he knew from his time as a coach there, over the signing.
Former Swansea manager Paul Clement has described the plight of Renato Sanches as 'sad'
Sanches has struggled to impress in 15 appearances at Swansea so far this season
'Bayern really supported it,' Clement told The Times. 'They thought he was going to a club who played football, and to a coach who would care and give him the attention he needs.
'He (Sanches) wasn't so keen initially. He thought he was going to go to Manchester United, Chelsea or Paris Saint-Germain. Bayern were saying, "You're not going there, it would be the same situation, you're not going to play".'
His eventual arrival for Swansea was billed as a huge coup for a club expected to battle to avoid Premier League relegation.
But Clement soon saw that Sanches, 20, was struggling with confidence and his team-mates, particularly those battling alongside him for a place in the starting line-up, were unimpressed by his form.
'When he came, he was far more damaged than I thought,' Clement said. 'It was really sad. He was a boy who had almost got the weight of the world on his shoulders.
'In training, when that pressure is not there, he was the best player. But then in games, I looked at the choices he was making, shooting from 45 yards on the angle, and he kept making those mistakes.
'He got in a vicious cycle of poor choices. The other players were saying, "he's playing like that and you're not picking me" so it became difficult to pick him.'
Sanches has played 15 times for Swansea this season.
Sanches lit up Euro 2016 as an integral part of the Portugal side that won the tournament
Sanches joined on loan from Bayern Munich, where Clement once worked as a coach
Since Carlos Carvahal replaced Clement as Swansea manager, the club have won three in five including impressive home victories against Liverpool and Arsenal.
They are 19th in the table with 23 points from 25 games but are only one point from moving out of the drop zone.
They are away to Leicester on Saturday in the Premier League.