Mark Warburton says Ryan Manning had to leave Queens Park Rangers after failing to sign a new contract with the club.
Manning was not included in any of Rangers' opening four matchday squads at the beginning of the 2020/21 Championship campaign.
The utility man, who moved to west London from Galway United in 2015, is reported to have rejected a new contract offer from QPR, with his previous deal set to expire next summer.
The former Republic of Ireland Under-21 international went on to join Swansea City late on transfer deadline day for a fee in the region of £250,000.
And QPR boss Warburton says his side had to offload Manning, who has signed a three-year deal with Swansea, in a bid to avoid losing him for nothing next summer.
“He is a very talented boy and we absolutely we wish him all the best with his future career with Swansea,” Warburton told West London Sport.
“He had a very good season for us last year. But from our point of view, if you make an offer and someone wants to sign then great. But if they don’t then we just have to move on.
“QPR can’t be a club that sees players walk out of the door at the end of their contract for nothing.
“What we have to do is be strong about it and have some short-term pain for long-term gain.
“We have to show where we stand. It’s not about a staff member it’s about a club and we have to be very strong about that.
“I wish Ryan all the best but I only want players to be here and who want to contribute to the team performance.”
Manning's transfer to south Wales was not registered in time for him to be involved in the 2-1 loss to Huddersfield Town.
However, the 24-year-old watched on from the stands as Swansea suffered their first league defeat of the campaign against the Terriers.
He is in contention to make his Swans debut at Coventry City on Tuesday night.
