SWANS: ‘He never changed’: Matos on the Ronald turnaround after deadline-day doubt

Vitor Matos has praised Ronald’s response to a summer of transfer uncertainty, after the winger set up the clinching goal in Swansea City’s 3-1 win over Burnley.

The Brazilian, who came close to leaving on deadline day, burst clear and rolled the ball across for Zan Vipotnik to finish, another telling contribution from the bench.

“Since I’ve arrived here, Ronald has been an unbelievable wall of work. He just works so much. He offers so much and has so much energy,” said Matos.

“He tries to help the team with everything he has. He has never changed, even with the situation of getting transferred or not. Never changed. That’s why he deserves credit.”

Matos pointed to a growing bond with the Swansea.com Stadium crowd.

“It’s good when this connection with the fans starts growing. We are all human beings, we all have good and bad moments in life,” he said.

“Most importantly is how we fight the bad ones and find a way to come back again. That’s what he did, and I hope he can keep going like that.”

An impact from the bench

Ronald has now had a hand in goals against Derby, Southampton and Burnley from the bench, and Matos said the winger remained a valued part of the group.

“He’s come from the bench, impacted games, impacted against Derby, Southampton and today. I’m really happy for him because he’s part of us and part of the family. We’ll always be like that,” he said.

“We believe a lot in him, like in all the players, and I’m really pleased that he’s like that at the moment.”

The head coach said nothing had changed in the squad’s focus despite the summer noise.

“The most important thing is that we keep focused on the process, on what we can improve, and then the results will speak for themselves,” he said.