As he prepares to watch the new foreign imports at the Liberty settle into the new season, one of Swansea's finest overseas stars was confident that the new lads would settle in and do Swansea proud in the Championship.
Hadziabdic was a rare breed when he was brought to South Wales in the early 1980s by John Toshack along with Ante Rajkovic. Most sides were full of home grown talent but Toshack – in a very similar way to how Martinez is – saw the merits in getting in foreign talent and nobody can argue that both players were anything but big successes.
They played their part in the Swans only two seasons in the top flight and are both remembered fondly for their time in South Wales and both will always be guaranteed of a warm welcome whenever they return.
Times of course have changed and the Premiership is full of more foreign than homegrown stars pretty much and so will the Swans be next season with the amount of foreign players now into double figures following the summer catches. But that isn't something that bothers anyone as we look to a season in the Championship for the first time in 24 years. And it most definitely is not something that worries Jimmy who told Wales on Sunday “When we came here, we were so hungry to do well at that time
“We wanted to prove ourselves, we wanted to be successful and be good players and make most of the opportunity in a new country and new league. That is why you come.
“This was a long time ago and, of course, the contracts then compared to now are completely different. But the desire should be no different because the opportunity is the same.
“What is always important is a good atmosphere.
“We had that – a family atmosphere – and local players with the club’s spirit, players like John Mahoney, Alan Curtis and Wyndham Evans.
“They were friendly people and taught us a lot.
“Swansea do not have so many local players now but, although it is difficult to tell from the outside, it seems Martinez has that same atmosphere with his players.
“It is the same if you are a manager or a father – if there is not a good atmosphere in your house then you are in trouble.
“But I have watched Roberto and, for me, he is very good. He’s a European player, a midfielder who was very skilful and sees the game like that.
“He has impressed me and although you are always learning as a manager, he is learning fast.
“There is a lot of talk about foreigners in the game, and the question is always asked when England do not perform very well
“But you look at the top sides like Spain and Holland and they all have players who play abroad. They benefit from it.
“They talk about foreign players over here, but the majority will bring something different to the side they play for.
“Of course it’s good to have a nucleus of local players, but it is not always necessary or possible.
“I went to watch Martinez in training with Swansea last week, but I did not see any young local coaches there watching and learning. Perhaps that is one reason why there are so few local players.
“It was a long time ago and it is good people still remember 27 years ago – but the feeling at the club now is good too
“I remember being invited as a guest to Old Trafford when I was manager of Qatar and, when I see the facilities and professionalism at Swansea, I see similarities to a small Manchester United.
“It is a lot different from the changing rooms at the Vetch!
“The club is looking good and the future seems good too.”
This article first appeared on JACKARMY.net.