The reasons behind Paul Watson's shock Swansea City exit and what happens next

Attention will soon turn to what happens next ahead of what will be a

"Paul has started to get the tools he needs, he is building a team and there is a ton of stuff going on behind the scenes.

"I need to give him the resources to do his job. Paul is here and I am confident he will get us to where we want to go."

Chairman Andy Coleman was adamant in his support for sporting director Paul Watson when the pair faced supporters at the last fans' forum.

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Nearly seven months later, it appears Coleman's backing has evaporated. Watson's departure on Tuesday felt like something of a shock, but perhaps it shouldn't have.

A poor opening summer transfer window, the disastrous appointment of Michael Duff, a bizarre and ill-advised public friendship with Nathan Jones, and a second summer window that has left current boss Luke Williams with a squad containing some pretty gaping shortcomings.

Watson's critics will feel there was no shortage of material.

The exact reason for the decision to bring the curtain down on his time at the club isn't yet known, but the early suggestion is that all the above came into the thinking behind the move.

It's understood there have also long been concerns in some quarters that Watson's footballing philosophy simply didn't align with that of Williams, which some feel was reflected in his recruitment strategy.

Several agents were also known to have become frustrated in their dealings with Watson, while it soon became apparent his relationship with supporters was irreparable.

Nevertheless, the timing still feels a little odd and, not for the first time, it feels like there are more questions than answers.

It's certainly fair to wonder why, over a month after after the window closed, Coleman saw it fit to make a change now. Perhaps there was some disappointment about how the window panned out, but fortunes on the pitch haven't been anywhere near disastrous enough to warrant such a hard response.

In fact, one has to say that this has, on the whole, been a pretty decent start to the season.

Having seemingly worked so hard to implement the overhaul of the recruitment department that Watson had promised, an approach that would include data analysis at its heart, it also seems curious that Coleman has pivoted relatively quickly from apparent unequivocal support to such a public vote of no confidence.

Regardless, attention will soon turn to what happens next - and indeed where this episode leaves Swansea's recruitment strategy ahead of what's likely to be an important January transfer window.

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It seems likely that Martin Hodge, as head of recruitment, will take a leading role in the interim, with the suggestion being that the club will be looking at appointing a new sporting director soon.

Who will ultimately be responsible for negotiations isn't yet clear, and that questions could well become more pertinent should the club opt to sign free agent duo Cyrus Christie and Adam Reach, both of whom are training with the team over the international break.

The club are nevertheless keen to push the feeling of it largely being business as usual on the ground. But some of the underlying uncertainties now go beyond the recruitment team.

Alan Sheehan's place on the coaching staff doesn't appear to be under any sort of threat at the moment, but there's no question Watson was a huge ally, and was a key in offering the guarantees the Irishman received over his position following Duff's sacking.

Whether Watson's departure will now have any sort of knock-on effect on his future remains to be seen, but his position suddenly looks a bit weaker in his absence.

One thing is for certain, Swansea will have to ensure their house is in order one way or the other, and sooner rather than later if they are to form an effective strategy for the January window.