There are no fewer than six names on the shortlist to take over as manager at Swansea City, BBC Sport have reported.

The Welsh side are looking to appoint a successor to Graham Potter, who left the club last month after just a single season in charge to take over as manager at Premier League Brighton and Hove Albion.

According to the report, Gus Poyet; Michael Appleton and Cameron Toshack are among those under consideration to take over at the Liberty Stadium, although Tranmere boss Micky Mellon and Newport County manager Michael Flynn are no longer thought to be in the running.

Poyet has been out of work since leaving French top tier side Bordeaux in September 2018, and has previously managed in The Championship with Brighton, with whom he won promotion from League One in 2010, and guided them to the play-offs in 2013 in his final season with the club.

The Uruguayan then went onto manage the likes Sunderland; Real Bettis; AEK Athens and Shanghai Shenhua before his move to France with Bordeaux.

Appleton meanwhile has previously managed with Portsmouth in the Championship, where he was relegated following the club's administration, before brief spells in the division with Blackpool and Blackburn over one five month period.

The 43-year-old most recently worked as an assistant to interim West Brom manager James Shan in the final month of last season, as The Baggies missed out on promotion to the Premier League following a play-off semi final defeat to local rivals Aston Villa.

While he does not have the senior managerial experience of the others, Toshack is at least familiar with Swansea, having worked as an academy coach at the club since 2013, his only managerial role to date.

The verdict

It seems as though Swansea are edging ever closer to appointing their successor to Michael Appleton, and not a moment too soon with pre-season fast approaching.

The three candidates mentioned all have varying experiences that would lend them to the job, and it looks as though it may come down to a choice of experience in management or knowledge of the club in the final decision as to who will step into the Liberty Stadium dugout.