Ryan Manning makes Swansea City play-off claim ahead of the 2022/23 campaign | OneFootball

Swansea City defender Ryan Manning has admitted that he believes the club should be targeting a place in the play-offs next season.

The Jacks experienced an incredibly inconsistent 2021/22 campaign as they eventually meandered their way to a 15th place finish in the league standings.

Head coach Russell Martin will be keen to assemble a squad this summer which is capable of reaching new heights at this level later this year.

Whereas Swansea are set to wave goodbye to Cyrus Christie when his loan deal expires later this month, fellow defender Manning is set to remain at the club until 2023.

Manning featured regularly for the Jacks during the previous campaign as he managed to show some signs of promise in the Championship.

In the 37 league games that he participated in, the full-back provided an attacking outlet by scoring two goals and producing four assists for his team-mates.

Looking ahead to the 2022/23 season, the 25-year-old has revealed that he is hoping that the club will be able to challenge for the play-offs.

Speaking to Swansea’s official website, Manning said: “I think with a good pre-season behind us after a year of this philosophy and understanding how the manager wants us to play, I think that’s going to be crucial to get a good start.

“The slow start killed us this year, because we finished quite brightly.

“So pre-season will be massive.

Quiz: Can you identify each of these 24 ex-Swansea City players just by looking at 3 clues?

1 of 24

Currently plays in Turkey, left Swansea in 2017, featured for France at international level

Wilfried Bony Bafetimbi Gomes Michu Fernando Llorente

“I think we have to be looking for play-offs next season, or top 10 at least.

“With the squad we have, the way we play, the games we’ve dominated this season but not got our rewards out of, we know If we eradicate the mistakes and take advantage when we’re on top, we can turn draws and losses into more points.”

The Verdict

Whereas Swansea are currently able to call upon the services of the likes of Joel Piroe and Jamie Paterson who both excelled in the Championship last season, they will need to strengthen their squad if they are to emerge as legitimate contenders for a play-off place in the upcoming campaign.

By nailing his recruitment over the summer, Martin may be able to lead the Jacks to a bright start to the season.

Manning will be hoping to take his game to new heights under the guidance of Martin after producing some encouraging performances in the previous campaign.

Having recorded a respectable average WhoScored match rating of 6.67 in the second-tier, it will be interesting to see how the former Queens Park Rangers man will fare at this level later this year.