Swansea City's Nottingham Forest deal has softened the blow of Matt Grimes, Coventry switch | OneFootball

Losing Matt Grimes in January was a seismic blow for Swansea City but Lewis O'Brien has proved a shrewd addition

Matt Grimes shocked Swansea City supporters at the end of January when he sealed a move to Coventry City seemingly out of the blue, leaving the Swans without their club captain and with little time to replace him.

While Grimes split opinion amongst some of the Jack Army, there was no denying he was hugely influential on the way Swansea played, and the fact he'd missed just a handful of games since the club's relegation to the Championship in 2018 meant that replacing him was going to be a difficult task.

However, Swansea did manage to bring in midfield reinforcements on deadline day when they announced the loan signing of Lewis O'Brien until the end of the season, and while the addition of the 26-year-old isn't a long-term solution, it's certainly helped soften the blow of Grimes' departure.

Grimes is a unique player, and it was always going to be virtually impossible for Swansea to replace him stylistically, but O'Brien has added a different dimension to the way the Swans play and has already become a fan favourite at the Swansea.com Stadium.

Lewis O'Brien addition has helped soften the blow of Matt Grimes' exit

It looked to be a real coup for Swansea when they sealed the signature of O'Brien on deadline day, and it's certainly proved that way with the Nottingham Forest loanee becoming a key player under both Luke Williams and Alan Sheehan.

With O'Brien's future at Forest looking uncertain, Swansea were one of a number of clubs keen to sign him on loan, and they beat competition from a number of Championship rivals to sign him.

In normal circumstances, Swansea would likely have lost on O'Brien's signing, particularly as they're paying a reported £27,000 a week for his services, but the situation with Grimes forced their hand with time in the transfer window running out.

The Swans had a gaping hole in their midfield following Grimes' shock exit, and it's fair to say that O'Brien has done an excellent job of plugging the gap and helping the club allay any relegation fears, with his recent early goal against Plymouth Argyle setting the tone for a comfortable win which took them nine points clear of the drop zone.

Since joining, O'Brien has started all 11 of Swansea's games, and he's brought a real energy to the midfield which has seen him become a fan favourite amongst the Jack Army, just like he was at Huddersfield Town.

There was a real fear amongst Swansea supporters about how things may play out after Grimes' departure, with their former skipper being a mainstay in the starting XI for the best part of seven years, but things haven't panned out too badly.

It's easy to see why so many Championship clubs were interested in O'Brien prior to his move to Swansea, and his recent Man of the Match award-winning performance against Derby County will leave the Jack Army hoping the midfielder's Swans' stay doesn't come to an end this summer.

Swansea City may struggle to seal a permanent deal for Lewis O'Brien this summer

There's no doubt that Swansea would like to add O'Brien to their ranks on a permanent basis this summer, but finances could well prove to be a sticking point.

While the club's owners were happy to pay O'Brien's reported £27,000 weekly wages on a short-term basis to replace Grimes and ensure they had enough quality to remain in the Championship, doing it on a permanent basis seems unlikely.

Swansea's new Sporting Director, Richard Montague, has spoken on a number of occasions about the need to find players who can outperform their value, and you feel that O'Brien will just be too expensive to sign on a permanent basis.

It's a pivotal summer for O'Brien, and the 26-year-old's next move will surely be a permanent one with seemingly no future at Nottingham Forest.

He won't be short of interest in the Championship, but after two successful loan spells in the MLS, O'Brien has shown he's not afraid to buck the trend and move abroad in search of top-flight football.

As for Swansea, midfield is a position they will clearly need reinforcements in this summer and a long-term Grimes replacement will have to be brought in, but for now everybody at the club will just be grateful that they managed to sign O'Brien in January, as it's certainly softened what could have been a seismic blow.