With the Swans looking for a third boss in less than 12 months, Giggs was asked if he was interested in managing a club he was linked with before Bob Bradley was appointed in October 2016.

In a succinct reply, Giggs told Sky Sports News: "No. I’ve spoken to them before, last time before they appointed Bob Bradley."

Asked why things had gone wrong at Swansea, Giggs speculated that the sales of Gylfi Sigurdsson and Fernando Llorente in the summer had weakened the squad.

He said: "I don’t know, I’m not in the club but obviously over the years (it has been) a really well run club, (who) play the right way and are an established Premier League team.

"But it’s tough now, you see the teams down there. It gets tougher each year. They lost good players, didn’t they? They lost Sigurdsson, they lost Llorente, and probably never replaced them. That’s always a problem."

Clement had saved Swansea from relegation after being appointed in January but his departure was confirmed less than 48 hours after the 3-1 loss at Everton on Monday night - Swansea’s ninth defeat in 11 games.

Following Clement’s sacking, chairman Huw Jenkins said in a statement on the official Swansea website: "To change the manager, especially at only the halfway point of the season, is the last thing we wanted to do as a club.

"We had three different managers last season and as a result we all wanted to give Paul as much time as possible to turn things around.

"But we felt we couldn’t leave it any longer and needed to make a change to give us the best chance of an uplift and a turnaround in fortunes with the club bottom of the Premier League.

"Paul has been at the club for 12 months and what he achieved in the second half of last season to keep us in the top flight was a tremendous feat.

"I have had an excellent working relationship with Paul and we are all, including the owners, surprised and disappointed it hasn’t worked out this season.

"We wish Paul every success in his career going forward.’’

Clement had hoped to be given funds by the club’s American owners to strengthen the squad in the January transfer window but, after his side collected just 12 points from their opening 18 fixtures, has now been shown the door along with assistants Nigel Gibbs and Karl Halabi.

Swansea on Thursday morning announced long-serving midfielder Leon Britton, who has been part of the coaching staff of late, had been put in caretaker charge and would oversee Saturday’s match against Crystal Palace.

The Welsh outfit said on their official website: "Swansea City can confirm that Leon Britton will take charge of Saturday’s Premier League clash with Crystal Palace at the Liberty Stadium.

"Britton, who stepped into a player-coaching role last month after 15 years at the club, will be assisted by under-23 coaches Gary Richards and Cameron Toshack. Goalkeeping coach Tony Roberts will also continue to assist. The quartet took training this morning.

"Further details on the managerial search will follow for supporters in due course."

PA