Swansea City boss Russell Martin says he expects Morgan Whittaker to stay despite the winger asking not to be picked for the Swans’ draw at QPR.
Martin had intended to pick Whittaker for the visit to Loftus Road, but the winger said he was not in the right frame of mind to play after Swansea rebuffed a bid from Rangers for him.
Martin says he is “disappointed” by Whittaker’s stance but does not expect him to leave the club this month.
“Nothing has changed,” Martin said.
“We have not received any new bids and nothing has changed except for Morgan’s frame of mind.
“We had agreed he was going to be in the squad and then Morgan told me just after my press conference on Friday that he wasn’t in the right frame of mind to be in the squad or to travel.
“It is disappointing, we’d have loved for him to be involved today, I think he could have made a difference, it would have been a good game for him to come on and be involved in.
“I can’t see how a deal gets done with how far apart the two clubs are.”
Martin had reiterated his intention to keep Whittaker as he confirmed Swansea had turned down a bid for the 22-year-old last week – believed to be from the Scottish giants – with the offer understood to have been well short of the asking price set by Swansea’s American owners.
Rangers boss Michael Beale is targeting attacking players this month and said Whittaker is “certainly a player that I’m aware of”. and the Scottish club are reportedly preparing a third bid for the player.
Whittaker has had a limited impact at Swansea since joining from Derby County for around £700,000 in February 2021, but has impressed this term on loan at Plymouth.
Martin says Whittaker is likely to stay with the club and is frustrated his opportunity to play is being impacted.
“We have to respect his frame of mind. I am sure there will be loads of people who will be upset by it and frustrated by it, but he’s a young man,” Martin told BBC Sport Wales..
“It’s frustrating as it just means it is longer until we can get him on the pitch with us.
“It’ll be 10 days and then the window will be closed and we can look at getting him on the pitch.”
Whittaker joins Burnley target Michael Obafemi in seeking a move away from the Liberty Stadium, while Jamie Paterson is a target for Coventry City.
“It’s a frustrating one with both of them,” Martin said.
“I’m quite relaxed about it all. By the time we play again, the transfer window will be shut.”
