Swansea City's 2021-22 Championship season preview

Swansea have finished sixth and fourth in the last two Championship campaigns

New season, new era. After successive Championship play-off campaigns, Steve Cooper is gone and Russell Martin is the new man in charge at Swansea City.

The ultimate goal is to guide Swansea back to the Premier League, where they looked at home for much of a seven-season spell which ended in 2018.

But is promotion a realistic target for 2021-22? At this stage, the answer is probably not.

Swansea were one game away from going up in May, but much has changed since defeat to Brentford at Wembley.

The appointment of Martin, whose passion for possession football makes him an ideal fit for Swansea, has been welcomed by their fans.

But the former Scotland defender has had only days to work with his new players after being appointed last Sunday - and the squad he inherits looks short on depth and quality in certain areas.

How did last season go?

It was almost a campaign to remember, with Swansea looking like automatic promotion contenders for much of the season before going close in the play-offs.

The football Swansea produced was often more functional than thrilling, but few could argue with the results Cooper's team produced.

Swansea have been continually cutting costs since they dropped out of the top flight, and Cooper deserves credit for finishing in the top six in each of his two campaigns in charge.

Last season's successes were built on a formidable defensive record, with the springtime dip in results which ended top-two hopes coming when Swansea's resilience waned.

They recovered to secure play-off semi-final victory over Barnsley, but barely laid a glove on Brentford in the final and from that moment on, it seemed Cooper's days may be numbered.

With a number of key players moving on and his contract in its final year, Cooper eventually departed in July.

Swansea paid around £400,000 to trigger Russell Martin's buyout clause at MK Dons

What are their prospects this season?

At 35, Martin is the sort of young, ambitious manager Swansea have had success with in the last 15 years or so.

The hope is that he can emulate the likes of Roberto Martinez, Brendan Rodgers and Michael Laudrup by winning games while playing eye-catching football.

But it is a big ask. Centre-back Marc Guehi, arguably Swansea's best player last season, departed this summer along with two other loanees, goalkeeper Freddie Woodman and midfielder Conor Hourihane, who made an impact - initially at least - after arriving from Aston Villa in January.

Swansea will not miss having to pay Andre Ayew's wages - which were massive in Championship terms - but they will miss his goals and his influence in the dressing room after his contract expired.

Veteran forward Wayne Routledge is another senior pro who, unless he signs the new deal he has been offered, will no longer be around, while captain Matt Grimes may well be sold this month.

As a result, Swansea's squad looks thin, particularly in attacking areas.

Martin needs reinforcements this month, although money is tight.

Head coach Russell Martin's view

"We're going to give it everything we've got. We owe that to the supporters and to the people who work at the club who support the club.

"We are going to do it in our way, which is a way that I think is aligned with people of Swansea, he city and the fanbase.

"We are going to try to build a strong identity over the next few years hopefully.

"We have a strong culture and we have a squad that's full of ability, athleticism and hunger. The rest is up to us to bring - that'll be a team that looks the same wherever it goes."

Transfers in

Kyle Joseph (Wigan Athletic, £500,000 rising to £800,000); Joel Piroe (PSV Eindhoven, £1m rising to £2m); Liam Walsh (Bristol City, free).

Transfers out

Andre Ayew (Al Sadd, free); George Byers (Sheffield Wednesday, free); Kieron Freeman (Portsmouth, free); Declan John (Bolton, free); Barrie McKay (released); Wayne Routledge (released, contract offered)