Swansea's march into the record books will leave them with a struggle to keep their history-making skipper in the summer.
Ashley Williams is set to become the first captain to lead the club out in a major final, but his vital role in their march to Wembley WILL trigger a Liverpool bid for his services.
After emerging this season as one of the outstanding centre-halves in the Premier League, Williams is a hot property, and Arsenal, Spurs and Newcastle are also monitoring his progress.
Yet Liverpool have emerged as favourites to land the defender, given the close relationship between Anfield boss Brendan Rodgers and the man he made captain at the Liberty Stadium.
Ex-Swans manager Rodgers has so far steadfastly stuck to the transfer game plan introduced by his club's American owners, in pursuing only young, promising players who will retain a potential sell-on value.
Yet he has made it clear he wants to add more experience in defence in the summer and Williams fits the bill perfectly, given he is now the ideal age, 28, for a centre-half and leader of a team - a quality Rodgers admitted only last week he was desperate to introduce into the side.
The Liverpool manager has been given the green light by his owners to make the move, and is prepared to pay approaching £10million for Williams - a fee Swansea will be able to command given the rival interest from the two north London clubs.
Rodgers offered a commitment he wouldn't make any approach for Swansea players when he left the club last summer, a promise he kept, despite the ultimate capture of Joe Allen, as that move was triggered by a Spurs bid.
But the promise was to stay away for one year, leaving the way clear for the Reds boss to make his move in the coming close-season.
It is understood Williams has already indicated a preference for Anfield if he is allowed to leave in the summer - although, as he signed a three-year contract last October, Swansea will fight hard to persuade him to stay.
Their determination will only increase after he lead the team to Wembley for the first time in the club's history... and is now determined to write his name in the club's history by winning their first major trophy in their centenary season.
After seeing off European champions Chelsea in the semi-final of the Capital One Cup, Swansea will be overwhelming favourites to beat fourth-tier Bradford at Wembley and lift the trophy.
The fact that Williams marshalled a defence which kept clean sheets in both legs against the megabucks Londoners has added to his reputation, but he insisted after Wednesday's goalless draw that his only thought was to now finish the job in the League Cup - 100 years after the club was formed as Swansea Town.
"You can earn a lot of money in football, but making history and creating memories is what you remember at the end of the day," he explained.
"Hopefully, in the future, people will look back at this team that made history. We've done that just by getting to the final, but now we want to win it.
"Winning the Championship Play-off Final is the best moment of my career so far but lifting the trophy next month will top that. What better year than this to reach a Wembley final than the club's centenary?"
Williams led the celebrations at the Liberty Stadium on Wednesday night, but wants an even better party after the final on February 24.
"We'll be favourites for the final but we can't afford to take Bradford lightly after beating three Premier League teams who have all beaten us," he added. "We want to make history, so we have to stay focused and finish the job."
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