Loyalty counts for nothing - Tudur Jones

Luke Williams would have been "silly" to completely shut down speculation linking him with West Bromwich Albion, according to Owain Tudur Jones.

The former Swansea midfielder says Williams could have dealt better with the rumours linking him with the vacant West Brom manager's job, which dominated headlines over the New Year period.

After Saturday's 1-1 draw with the Baggies, Williams himself admitted speculation surrounding his future became a distraction that he "handled poorly".

But Jones has sympathy with Swansea's head coach, saying managers have a right to keep their options open.

"He didn't shut it down, but I think as a manager you'd be silly to, if I'm being completely honest," the former Wales international told Radio Wales Breakfast.

"We've seen too many examples these days... I understand everybody wants loyalty and everybody wants this and that, but loyalty counts for nothing.

"As a manger you see it happen too many times the other way where you do stay and you show a little bit of loyalty, and two months down the road you've lost four in a row and you get sacked anyway.

"So I think they have to keep a door slightly ajar, just in case."

Bookmakers had made Williams favourite to replace Carlos Corberan at the Hawthorns and, having initially failed to quash rumours in media interviews, Williams eventually confirmed he was staying at Swansea.

"I think he could have dealt with it in a slightly better way," said Jones.

"Even if on reflection he would have spoken to West Brom, had he come out straight away and said 'I'm not interested...'."

Williams admitted he "created a lot of the noise without meaning to", but Jones believes too much was made of the links with West Brom.

"I think a couple of games ago when the links were there it was quite obvious that it wasn't a strong link," he said.

"I think it was a fan account of West Brom that had come out and said this and that, and we know these days, especially on social media, you don't need too much inside information to make a story up, so how much truth there was to it I'm not sure.

"Hopefully it's now water under the bridge, Swansea can move on, and they'll be grateful of that late point that they had against West Brom, who hopefully won't have Luke Williams as their new manager soon."