PAOLO Di Canio is considering his future at Swindon Town following the events of the last week.

In a statement released exclusively to the Swindon Advertiser, Di Canio stressed that he has been made false promises by the club, that Matt Ritchie was sold behind his back and that he would have walked away from the Robins a long time ago “if it wasn’t for the players and fans of Swindon Town”.

The statement reveals underlying tensions at the County Ground and ends with the sentence “at this moment of time my future remains unclear”.

The statement reads: “It is with great regret that I issue this statement but unfortunately, the events of the last few days have left me with no alternative other than to consider my position and explain the reasons why. As ever, the great fans of Swindon Town Football Club deserve to know the truth.

“Without going into too much detail, our preparations for the game at Leyton Orient on Tuesday were severely undermined by an administrator for the Club actively offering to sell our entire playing staff without any reference to me and contrary to the terms of my contract.

“Having been advised that a takeover was imminent, Phil Spencer and I actively began to pursue players we could bring in to strengthen the squad, confident that with a few additions we have a genuine prospect of gaining automatic promotion and therefore, we lined up the players we wanted to bring in.

“On Wednesday this week we were told that the sale to the new owners had gone through. With less than 48 hours remaining before the transfer window closed, we were obviously keen to know our position in regard to bringing in players before the deadline, it was therefore arranged for Phil Spencer to go to meet the new owners that afternoon to discuss this with them.

“When Phil met with them he was assured that Matt Ritchie would not be sold despite there being an offer from Bournemouth to acquire him. He was told “there is no way that we would sell one of our best players to one of our main competitors”.

“Consequently, we were assured that Matt Ritchie was going nowhere and money would be made available for the squad to be strengthened. Within an hour I received a phone call from Matt Ritchie telling me that the club had agreed to sell him and he was in the process of agreeing personal terms. I regard this as a clear breach of my contract with the Club and moreover, a clear attempt to undermine my position notwithstanding the success we have achieved in the last 18 months. Matt Ritchie was sold behind my back.

“For the good of Swindon Town Football Club, I chose not to disclose these matters at yesterday’s press conference, having been assured by both the new and old owners that sufficient funds would be made available for us to secure our transfer targets if I remained silent about that which took place behind the scenes.

“At the time of the press conference, Phil and I had managed to secure agreements with Charlton to bring in Danny Green and Bradley Wright-Philips on loan until the end of the season and for a swap deal with Cheltenham for Marlon Pack and Luke Rooney.

“I kept my promise but the Club did not keep theirs.

“A statement issued by the Club yesterday stated that they were committed to achieving Championship football next season. I have to question how this can possibly be achieved in the light of the events I have brought to your attention.

“I have worked so hard for the Club and made many sacrifices because I wanted to achieve something special. The players and my staff have been fantastic to me and the statistics prove that my way of managing, playing football and working is successful.

"With the club selling one of our best players behind my back and continually making promises that are broken, I feel at this moment that my job is not just impossible but is untenable. Of course I shall remain professional and continue to achieve the best I can, but under these circumstances it is not easy.

“If it wasn’t for the players and fans of Swindon Town, I would have walked away from this club a long time ago. I didn’t because I was given repeated assurances that the project to achieve success was always in place and I wanted to deliver this for the players, staff and most of all, the fans of this great Club.

"Despite being linked with a number of more high profile managerial jobs, they have never interested me. Now however I am forced to consider my future as I don’t know how I can continue to work in this environment.

“Too many questions remain unanswered.

“The future is clouded with uncertainty.

“At this moment of time my future remains unclear.”