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Another summer and another key transfer window for Swansea City Football Club.

After two seasons spent battling for Premier League survival, the club hierarchy will be out to make sure there is no repeat this term.

While chairman Huw Jenkins and head coach Paul Clement do not feel a major overhaul is required, they have both admitted strengthening is needed, and players who can come in and immediately challenge for first-team starting roles are a priority when it comes to new acquisitions.

The first of those new arrivals looks set to be Chelsea teenager Tammy Abraham . The England Under-21 international is set to move to the Liberty Stadium on a season-long loan.

But how does such a deal come about? What steps are taken along the way before a decision is made over a move for the player. Who has the final say? Here, we take a look.

The start of the process - scouting

Football may have changed in many ways during the Premier League era, but scouting remains at the heart of a club's recruiting process.

Swansea have invested in this area over the last 12 months, expanding their scouting team and bringing back former manager Brian Flynn to aid the work in that department, which is headed up by David Leabeater.

Some players will catch the eye during the course of scouting missions, while others will be recommended by head coach Clement or other senior figures.

They are tasked with finding players who would fit the Swansea template, but would fall within the club's financial range when it comes to doing a deal.

For example, there would be little point in the Swans' scouting team casting their eyes over a player likely to command a fee of £50million.

Hundreds of players will be watched across the course of a season, both at age-grade and senior level and reports compiled on the players strengths, weaknesses and character.

Of course, there are other means by which a player can come to a club's attention. Agents will make contact to gauge possible interest in their clients, while calls will be made to coaches or other contacts for recommendations, or an extra assessment and opinion.

The sifting stage

Once all the relevant reports and information have been compiled, the process of narrowing down to a shortlist begins.

Jenkins, Leadbeater and his scouting staff will meet to discuss the findings and a shortlist will start to emerge as the number of names are whittled down to a more manageable, focused number.

Again, Clement is also heavily involved in this process and kept abreast of all developments.

Analytics are introduced

(Image: Getty Images)

The next stage sees Dan Altman of North Yard Analytics work through the statistical background of each player.

The Harvard graduate was appointed shortly after Jason Levien and Steve Kaplan completed their takeover last summer as an additional layer was added to the transfer procedure.

But Altman will not only be looking at physical comparisons between players, although that is a big part of his remit.

He will also examine a player’s character traits to determine whether he will fit into the dressing room environment and whether their attitude will allow them to gel with team-mates should they become Swansea players.

No decision is made about whether to proceed with a move for a player based solely on the data, it is simply another level of analysis designed to allow the club to be more certain in their transfer dealing and avoid making expensive mistakes they can ill afford.

It allows a fuller picture to emerge.

“The analytics are not a replacement for what Paul Clement can bring to the table. Paul Clement is very much involved, he is integrally involved,” Kaplan told a Swansea City Supporters’ Trust fans’ forum in April .

“We recently had a three-hour meeting with Paul as part of planning for the summer.

“But his contacts and relationships are important. Not only his contacts with specific players but, when we identify a player, he undoubtedly will be able to reach an assistant coach from that club who will be able to say whether a player is a leader, a good lad.

"Or he might say he is not a guy we want, someone who will not put their heart and soul him, someone we are not going to want in Swansea.

“Statistics do not tell us any of that, Paul Clement’s relationships will allow us to do that.

“What the analytics allows us to do is have another check, another thing to look at to try and ensure we are not making a mistake. Mistakes are too costly for a club like ours.”

A decision is made

(Image: PA)

All the relevant information is then put together and presented in a series of meetings in which Jenkins, Clement, Levien and Kaplan are all involved.

From those discussions a consensus is reached over who the club should seek to pursue, and what Swansea City consider that player to be worth when it comes to how much they are willing to spend.

Players are grouped by position, and then ranked with the club then able to work down each depth chart should the top target be unavailable.

The owners have made clear they would not move for a player if Clement did not feel the individual in question was the right option, while it is Kaplan who will make the final decision in authorising the financial details of the move and the Swansea City Supporters' Trust board member is informed during the latter stages of a deal.