‘He hasn’t said yes and hasn’t said no’

New Swansea boss Michael Duff revealed the club are talking to star striker Joel Piroe to try to entice him to extend his stay at the club.

The Dutchman is out of contract next summer and gave Duff a first-hand look at what he can do by scoring two of his side’s goals in a 3-0 demolition of League One side Northampton in the first round of the Carabao Cup.

“We haven’t received a bid for Joel Piroe at the club, so it is pointless talking about his situation until someone makes a bid,” said Duff. “The club is talking to him. He hasn’t said yes and he hasn’t said no to a new contract.

“The one thing everyone is looking for in football is goals and Joel is a prized asset. If someone is willing to pay the right price then he may go.

“He was probably disappointed not to walk away with the match ball tonight because he had a number of chances to score more than two goals.”

Having been beaten by Newport and Oxford in the first round of the tournament in the last two seasons, Swansea fans were happy to see their side go through. As well as Piroe’s goals, new signing Josh Ginnelly fired home a 30-yard solo stunner to announce his arrival in added time.

“It was a tough lesson against a Championship side. We were left a bit short,” said Cobblers boss Jon Brady.

“There were a couple of chances in the first half. They are a high-level Championship team and it was hard.

“They played with excellent passing and movement, and they were very good out of possession and jumped all over us. There is lots to work on and much to sharpen up.

“We knew they would be really tough, especially with the changes we had to make. We had to give certain players minutes and build up our fitness. It is hard to get results when you are working through that.

“To only make four changes from their side last weekend made it a really tough challenge. We made seven changes from our team on Saturday, and we knew we would go through some tough moments.”