Town boss Mick McCarthy has confirmed that he held talks with Yeovil winger Joel Grant over the summer, but says that deal would only have happened if the swap move involving Paul Anderson and Jay Emmanuel-Thomas had fallen through. Grant, 26, joined the Glovers from Wycombe Wanderers in July having held talks with the Blues manager.
McCarthy says Grant and his representatives were aware that Town were working on the switch which saw Emmanuel-Thomas move to Bristol City and Anderson join the Blues: "I had talks with him here. There were things ongoing and I had a deal for Paul Anderson if I could get Jay Emmanuel-Thomas out to them.
"I was spinning plates, like I do in the summer, and just hoping they didn’t all fall on my head and they didn’t.
"I had that deal lined-up and [Grant] and his agent knew that that was the case and they were talking to other clubs like they do, like players do and agents do.
"I was never, ever going to sign anybody without losing one, so the symbiotic deal was lose Jay, take Paul and I’m delighted with my deal.
"If Jay hadn’t have gone, who knows? But the deal I wanted, because I had it set up, meant Jay went to Bristol City and I took Paul Anderson. All along that was the case, so I was never signing Joel, unless something else [had happened] and they knew that.”