Swansea City January transfer dossier: Carlos Carvalhal must be backed in pursuit of more firepower

Following his arrival just after Christmas, Swansea City's fifth manager in two years Carlos Carvalhal sought to reassure his current crop they would be given the chance to prove themselves to him before big decisions are made.

Those words prompted a response or sorts, with the south Wales club winning their first game in charge under the former Sheffield Wednesday manager against Watford before going down swinging against Tottenham Hotspur on Tuesday (2 January) night.

Still reeling from the losses of Fernando Llorente and Gylfi Sigurdsson, there is plenty of work to be done. Club chairman Hew Jenkins has already told Carvalhal any funds for this month must be generated by player sales – although he will be free to pursue his own transfer targets. It's the least that can be promised after the club finished the summer with a net profit of £19.5m – the highest in the league.

What they need

With just 13 in 22 games, Swansea are the lowest goal scorers in the league. Wilfried Bony has struggled on his return to the Liberty Stadium but it is also a lack of creativity behind the strikers that is crippling Swansea.

Who could join

Diafra Sakho has emerged as Carvalhal's preferred choice to solve their problem up front. The West Ham United striker has not started a game in the league for his current club this season after a bizarre transfer deadline day move to Rennes collapsed and needing first-team football to make sure of his spot in the Senegal side at next summer's World Cup, he certainly has a real incentive to discover the form that saw him score eight times in his first 10 appearances for the Hammers.

Andre Ayew, who left the Swans to join West Ham 18 months ago for £20m, has been strongly linked with a return to the club, but his wages could prove to be an issue.

Long-term Swansea target Nacer Chadli is now ruled out until March, a setback that should see the club look elsewhere for a creative option. Cameroon striker Vincent Aboubakar, a summer target for the club, struck give goals in five Champions League appearances and has 23 to his name in all competitions for Porto this term. Breaking the bank for the 25-year-old would be a serious statement, with the striker's aspirations to play in the Premier League a helpful bonus for the club at the foot of the table.

Would could leave

Swansea's interest in Sakho and Andre Ayew could come at a price; David Moyes wants to bring Alfie Mawson to the London Stadium this month, according to The Sun. Mawson is now probably the club's most valuable player by some distance and funds collected for his potential sale could be pivotal, if Jenkins's comments about available funds ring true.

Should another striker come in to battle with Bony and Tammy Abraham then surely a loan move will beckon for Scotland Under-21 international Oliver McBurnie. And with Ki Sung-Yueng's contract expiring at the end of the season, cashing on the South Korean while they still can could be inevitable.

What the manager has said

"I did not talk money with the chairman, usually I don't deal with the money, it is my romantic side talking. I deal with footballers, then if we need - try to say which players we need.

"I will try and choose them but the money is not what I want to talk about, I am allergic to money."