“He’s one of the players I admire and I enjoyed working with him so much. I had a big part to play in his arrival at the club when I first came here (as Russell’s assistant Martin).

“There’s a lot to admire about Jamie Paterson, but it’s probably not as simple as phoning him up and asking him out.”

Although Swansea have brought in Eom Ji-Sung and Myles Peart-Harris this season, a fit and healthy Paterson would offer something to Williams’ side.

But as things stand, a return seems unlikely.

“We have to look at a lot of things. Who knows, there’s always a chance in football,” Williams added.

“I would always be half interested, but at the same time I have to make sure that all the decisions, all the contributions that I have… have to be made in the most responsible way possible for the whole group and for those that we already have. And then there’s the salary structure – there’s a lot of it.”