The former Sunderland, Rangers and Hearts goalkeeper is set to become a free agent this summer

Former Sunderland goalkeeper Jon McLaughlin is expected to leave Swansea City at the end of the season when his current contract expires - according to reports in Scotland.

The 37-year-old joined the Welsh club on a short-term basis last summer to provide cover amid injury concerns and later extended his deal through to the end of the campaign. Despite making just a single appearance — in the FA Cup against Southampton — McLaughlin has largely served as a backup, with limited playing time behind first-choice keeper Lawrence Vigouroux.

With fellow keeper Andy Fisher returning from injury and Swansea’s goalkeeping department now more settled, McLaughlin’s time at the club is expected to come to an end. Former head coach Luke Williams had previously expressed interest in retaining the experienced shot-stopper, but his departure in February led to a change in direction under current boss Alan Sheehan. As a result, there has been no movement toward renewing McLaughlin’s deal.

Sheehan told the BBC: "I think we are going to have to get the right blend. I think we are all very clear on that. I think we all agree that we want to bring in potentially really good players, but we want to give them that opportunity to thrive, and in order to do that, you have to have the right culture, the right experience and the right blend. We have had meetings already. We want to be aggressive in the right areas of recruitment and try to be aggressive on our targets.

Should he move on, McLaughlin will add Swansea to a long list of clubs on his CV, including Sunderland, Rangers, Hearts, Burton Albion, and Bradford City. With over 400 senior appearances to his name, he could still attract attention from clubs in need of experience in the goalkeeping department.

The Scotland international left Sunderland to sign for Rangers in 2020 after two seasons at the Stadium of Light. The goalkeeper became a free agent after departing Rangers at the end of last season, bringing four years at Ibrox to an end. During his time in Glasgow, McLaughlin made 46 appearances in all competitions before joining Championship club Swansea City.

He joined the Black Cats in the summer of 2018 while the club was in League One, going on to make 90 appearances over two seasons before the move Rangers. McLaughlin played twice for Sunderland at Wembley in the Checkatrade final penalty loss to Portsmouth and the League One play-off final defeat to Charlton Athletic.

Jon McLaughlin details Sunderland exit and Stewart Donald role

Speaking during a recent interview with Sunderland’s club historian, Rob Mason, McLaughlin detailed the situation surrounding his disappointing exit five years ago. When asked about his departure, he said: “The really honest answer is that it was the culmination of a few things.

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“Covid was a big factor. We should have already had a deal signed to stay at the club. After the first season, the club had come to us, but unfortunately, between my agent at the time and the club’s owners at the time, it wasn’t a match made in heaven. I think both sides were at fault.

“If it had just been myself and Jack Ross sat around a table, we’d have sorted it out in ten minutes. Once that hadn’t been resolved, and then the league suddenly stopped due to Covid, things spiralled, and the owners we talking about pay cuts rather than new contracts. I ended up going to Rangers, but it certainly wasn’t the case that I wanted to leave Sunderland. I was gutted that I did leave. I still live in the area, in Wynard, and that’s where I’ll come back to when I retire.”

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