Swansea sign Northern Ireland midfielder Galbraith

Ethan Galbraith will be squad number 30 at Swansea

Swansea City have signed Northern Ireland midfielder Ethan Galbraith from Leyton Orient for an undisclosed fee which is understood to be about £1.5m.

Galbraith, 24, has agreed a three-year deal with the option of a further 12 months and becomes the Championship club's fifth signing of the close season.

Swansea have been long-time admirers of former Manchester United youngster Galbraith, having first attempted to sign him during the January transfer window.

"Ethan is hungry and motivated for the challenge of stepping up to the Championship," Swansea head coach Alan Sheehan said.

"He has terrific technical ability which I am sure Swansea fans will appreciate and enjoy when they get to see him in action."

Galbraith had only 12 months to run on his contract with Orient, who were beaten in last season's League One play-off final by Charlton Athletic.

Charlton were one of a number of clubs linked with a move for Galbraith this summer, but it is Swansea who have won the race for his signature.

Galbraith, who can play at full-back but is viewed primarily as a midfield option by Swansea, left his homeland to join the academy at Old Trafford in 2017.

"Swansea has a history of intelligent, technical players making their mark and we believe Ethan has the ability and potential to develop into the latest of those," director of football Richard Montague told Swansea's website.

"He joins us after an excellent spell with Leyton Orient and the calibre of clubs who were interested in him underlines the quality he possesses."

Galbraith made one senior appearance for the Red Devils, in the Europa League in 2019, and had successful loan spells at Doncaster Rovers and Salford City before moving to Orient in 2023.

Ethan Galbraith has won seven Northern Ireland caps

Galbraith leaves the London club having made 96 appearances and scored 11 goals, with the move to Swansea giving him a first opportunity to play in the second tier of English football.

Swansea have been in need of midfield reinforcements following the retirement of Joe Allen and the January exit of long-time skipper Matt Grimes.

Lewis O'Brien enjoyed an impressive loan spell with the Swans in the second half of last season after being recruited as a short-term replacement for Grimes.

While Swansea have made it clear they would like to bring O'Brien back in 2025-26, they are likely to face fierce competition for the Nottingham Forest man's signature, with finances an obstacle in any potential deal.

Galbraith follows defenders Cameron Burgess and Ricardo Santos, winger Zeidane Inoussa and forward Bobby Wales in joining Swansea this summer.

Alan Sheehan's squad, who returned for pre-season this week, have also been boosted by the arrival of Sweden midfielder Melker Widell after his move to Wales was agreed in January.