Bony glad to be 'back home' at Swansea

The poweful Ivorian striker is back 'home' with Swansea after an injury-plagued smell at Manchester City. With the stresses and disappointment of his time at the Etihad behind him, Bony is laughing and joking as he looks ahead to Swansea's clash with Newcastle on Sunday.

"No, I don't regret it," he says of his £28m move from Swansea to City in January 2015.

"I know now what it's like to be in the top four and I was working with very good players at City. There was Sergio Aguero, David Silva, Yaya Toure – it was a great experience.

"It helped me to improve in lots of ways. I learned a lot and I tried to do my best for the team, but now I'm back here. I hope this can help me and help Swansea."

It is obvious why Bony feels at home at the Welsh club. He produced his best football at the Liberty Stadium, socring 34 goals in two seasons before making the move to City. The 28-year-old is confident he can recapture his old form under Swans boss Paul Clement, after a couple of disappointing seasons.

"I went to City and I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought, I didn't have the capacity to do more," Bony said. 

"When you go to somewhere like Manchester City, you know you're not going to play every week. Clubs like City want to win the Premier League, the FA Cup, the League Cup and the Champions League. 

"I didn't have as much time to train there as I did with Swansea and you need to be at 100 per cent at a club like City.

"Sadly for me it wasn't possible, but I still have confidence in myself and my ability."

Bony is still searching for match fitness and so is likely to appear off the bench against Rafa Benitez's Newcastle on Sunday.

The arrivals of Bony from City and Renato Sanches on a loan-deal from Bayern Munich have created a feel-good factor at the Welsh club, despite the departures of key players Gylfi Sigurdsson and Fernando Llorente.

"When I look at the squad on paper, and what the bench might look like, I have a lot of optimism," said head coach Clement. 

"Since I've been here, we were always one of the teams that crossed the ball the most. But if you look at the crosses in the last two games, we are the lowest. 

"So, straight away there has been a style change. Ultimately time is going to tell how we do, but I did say we can become a better team and I still believe that."