QPR boss Mark Warburton has claimed that Ryan Manning was sold to Swansea City on deadline day because he no longer wanted to be at the club and they ran the risk of losing him for nothing next summer. 

Manning had been linked with a move away throughout the summer but he ended up joining the Swans rather than any of the Premier League sides touted with an interest, such as West Ham United.

The R's sold the left-back to their Championship rivals for an initial fee of just £250,000 on Friday, which drew some criticism from fans of the west London club.

Speaking to West London Sport after yesterday's draw with Bournemouth, Warburton revealed the motivation behind the defender's sale for what seems a very low fee.

He said: "He is a very talented boy and we absolutely we wish him all the best with his future career with Swansea.

“He had a very good season for us last year. But from our point of view, if you make an offer and someone wants to sign then great. But if they don’t then we just have to move on.

“QPR can’t be a club that sees players walk out of the door at the end of their contract for nothing.

“What we have to do is be strong about it and have some short-term pain for long-term gain.

“We have to show where we stand. It’s not about a staff member it’s about a club and we have to be very strong about that.

“I wish Ryan all the best but I only want players to be here and who want to contribute to the team performance.”

The 24-year-old was a regular in Warburton's side last term and proved particularly useful when bombing forward, scoring five goals and adding seven assists in total.

However, Manning had yet to sign a contract extension and with just a year left on his deal could've left next summer for free.

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The Verdict

Selling Manning for just £250,000 was not the ideal way for the R's to conclude the summer window but Warburton's explanation makes a lot of sense.

Losing the player for free next summer would've been very frustrating for the west London club and you'd hope that there could be more money coming their way in the deal with the Swans, whether that's in installments or add-ons.

It looks a fantastic acquisition for the Swans and Manning should thrive as a wing-back in the system they play under Steve Cooper.