Joel Latibeaudiere: Defender would be 'disappointed' to leave Swansea City
- Published
Joel Latibeaudiere joined Swansea on a free transfer from Manchester City in 2020
Joel Latibeaudiere believes his agent is being "fair" in contract negotiations with Swansea City and says he will be disappointed if he leaves the Championship club this summer.
The 23-year-old defender's current deal expires at the end of the season.
Swansea head coach Russell Martin has made it clear he wants Latibeaudiere to stay but a new deal has so far failed to materialise.
"We've been speaking for a while," Latibeaudiere said.
"It's more my agent, Russell and the people above that are talking. I really enjoy playing here. I just have to stay positive, wait and see what happens, do what I can do on the pitch and hopefully something does come up.
"The staff, the style of football, it suits me to a tee. I've played the best football of my career here. So it would be disappointing [to leave]."
Latibeaudiere has made 77 appearances since joining Swansea on a free transfer from Manchester City in 2020.
Martin has repeatedly praised the attitude of the former England Under-17 international, who has played in numerous positions during his reign.
He has also suggested Swansea have the financial resources to cover a new deal for Latibeaudiere, which is not thought to be the case with the likes of Joel Piroe and Ryan Manning.
"I know the gaffer has been trying really hard to get things to move faster," Latibeauderie added.
"He's controlling what he can control. We've had lots of chats together and he knows where I stand.
"One [offer] was on the table at the start of the season, we just couldn't come to an agreement. Since then it's just been back and forth talking between my agent and the club.
"I think we're being fair. I back myself and my abilities. I trust my agent to do his job, he's looked after me my whole career."
New contracts for Swansea players and staff are signed off by the club's American owners.
Latibeaudiere says the wait for a deal to be agreed has left him wondering how he is viewed by Swansea's hierarchy.
"I also feel a bit like 'do they not want to give it to me? How do they see me?'," he added.
"I know how Russ views me and how the players and staff view me, but at the end of the day, it's not them giving out contracts. So there is a sense of frustration, but there's also a sense of disappointment as well."
Latibeaudiere will be part of a Swansea side looking to continue their best run of the season in the penultimate game of the campaign at Hull City on Saturday.
Martin's team have taken 19 points from the last 21 on offer to give themselves a slim - and unexpected - chance of reaching the play-offs.
Despite being 12th in the table, Swansea are just three points adrift of sixth place, with a home fixture against ninth-placed West Bromwich Albion to come on the final day of the season.
"We have all seen the table," Latibeaudiere said, "but the mood in the camp is just focus on doing what we need to do - just making sure we finish the season really strongly.
"We are just staying positive and controlling what we can control."