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Former Swansea City striker Shefki Kuqi has told WalesOnline that he wants to take over the vacant manager's role at the Liberty Stadium.

The Finn claims he has already held informal talks with Liberty Stadium chiefs about the possibility of succeeding former boss Graham Potter, who left SA1 to join Brighton and Hove Albion on Monday.

The search for the Englishman's replacement is well under way, with chairman Trevor Birch yesterday revealing that the club has already received "a significant number of applications from around the world".

Under-23s coach Cameron Toshack is currently the red-hot favourite to take the job.

But Kuqi, who played for the Swans for just over a year after joining in February 2010, is still hoping to convince the club that he is the right man for the job, although he has not yet launched an official application.

And, having unsuccessfully applied for the role at former club Ipswich Town last year, Swansea has clearly been on the radar of the former striker for some time.

"I spoke to them last time out, before Potter got the job," he explained.

"It's a club I know very well and I know the style of football they play and how they play it.

"I think this time around it would be a good opportunity.

"Of course, Potter did a great job last season and it would be a great opportunity to build on that and go to try and attack the top six.

"If the opportunity comes up this summer, I'd love to.

"I'm in for the job like anybody else."

Kuqi, who scored seven goals in 22 appearances for the Swans, is determined to land a job in the English pyramid, having previously exclusively plied his trade in Finland, where he earned himself a decent track record in helping to stabilise clubs in the grip of financial troubles.

"I know that more people know me more as a player and not as a manager but I was still playing when I was doing my badges and then I got a phone call from Finland asking if I would be interested in managing FC Honka in the Premier League there.

"They had very difficult financial circumstances and a bad situation. But we managed to stay in the Premier League.

"Then the season after I went to a Finnish Championship club, PK-25, because of the financial difficulties that Honka had. After the season we stayed up they had to start again with a different team and went to bankruptcy.

"In the first year we won the play-offs with PK-25 and got promoted."

Kuqi would then join FC Inter Turku six months later, again defying the odds to keep them in the top flight, before leaving in 2017.

Since then, he says he's been doing whatever he can to try and land a job in the UK.

"I've been watching training, watching games every weekend in the Premier League, Championship, League One, all different levels.

"I've got a lot of connections. I played with some players who are now managing.

"People like Garry Monk at Birmingham. Dean Smith, Roy Hodgson, all of these ex-players or coaches who are managing now. I've been in touch with them. I've watched their training, watched their games and seen how they do things. Basically preparing myself."

The 42-year old has done his very best to immerse himself within the British game, and he has already formed his own opinion about where the Swans are at the moment.

"I'm quite aware where the club is itself this season, their ambition and where they want to be and what they want to do. I know the situation at the club very well.

"They've a very young team and they've done really well.

"The club has always done well to produce young players and I just think they need to keep that in, and add a bit of experience in to help those young boys.

"I've played there, I know the style of football they like to play. I know what the fans demand and the football they want to see.

"Obviously they're going to lose a couple of players this summer but it's about using your connections and contacts in trying to fill that space.

"They could easily finish higher."

The club have already emphasised that building on the success of Potter in helping to develop young talent will be essential for whoever takes the reins, although it's not yet clear just how much money the new manager will have to spend on new recruits this summer.

Swansea's recent transfer policy has been disastrous over the last two windows, with 16 players departing since relegation from the Premier League was confirmed, with only nine players coming in.

But Kuqi, who says he already has potential targets in mind, insists that a lack of funds wouldn't put him off potentially taking the job, adding that his experiences under numerous coaches have given him a good idea on the recipe for success, and helped him understand the importance of preserving a club's identity.

"Money does help, but it's not always the key to success," he added. "It's about knowing what you want, knowing what you have and adding those.

"If I remember right, Fulham were one of the highest spenders in the Premier League and they got relegated.

"The two clubs that got promoted from the Championship, they didn't have the budget of a top-six side.

"It's important to identify the kind of football you want to play and knowing what you've got in your squad. I went to Swansea because Paulo Sousa found me.

"Then there was Brendan Rodgers. They changed managers, but the identity was always kept. They never changed it and I think as a manager and a coach you don't have to change it because you know the identity's there. You just need to have that quality to match that identity and the desire.

"I've been very fortunate to have so many coaches throughout my career and I've kept plenty of things, but it's important for me to be myself and know what I want, not what others have wanted. I've had so many good coaches, so it's about picking lots of good things but ensuring I don't go too far away from what I want."

Of course, behind every boss is a successful backroom team, and Kuqi says he has already picked out the members of staff who would join him in SA1.

"I do have people in mind," he said.

"Here in England, I've met lots of people, very experienced staff and one of them was my coach before.

"He went to Man United, where he spent seven years with Alex Ferguson, 11 years in total.

"He's won Premier Leagues, FA Cups and got to a Champions League final.

"I don't want to mention the name at the moment, but he's a great, great guy.

"I have my staff already and I know exactly where we stand."