HUW Jenkins is adamant Swansea City can match the ambitions of their manager — but that does not mean Brendan Rodgers will get millions to spend.

Rodgers recently signed a new three-and-a-half year deal at the Liberty Stadium after holding talks with Jenkins about where Swansea hope to go in the future.

The club have enjoyed a remarkable rise from the basement division to mid-table in the Premier League in just seven years.

The next step for Rodgers is to turn Swansea into a sustainable top-tier outfit, and he hopes they will have that status by the time his new contract expires in 2015.

If they are to achieve that goal, however, Swansea will not do so by throwing money at their squad.

Asked if the club could marry their targets with those of their bright young boss, Jenkins said: "Nobody is going to have bigger ambitions than myself, but things have to move forward at a pace that we are happy with and they will move forward that way.

"I think that in football there's too much focus on money being linked to ambition.

"My view is the total opposite to that. I think it's got to be about hard work with ambition rather than just getting the cheque book out."

Jenkins argues that too many top-level clubs throw big money at players who have experience of playing in the Premier League and do not get a fair return.

His theory is that it is better to find players elsewhere — whether it is overseas or in the Football League — who will have a point to prove in England's top tier.

As well as that, of course, they will come cheaper than proven performers.

"I look back to the game last week between ourselves and Norwich," Jenkins added. "You look at the two squads, and I believe I am right in saying that the majority of players in both have come through the lower leagues. That means they have that hunger and desire when they get the chance to play in the Premier League.

"These players have worked their way up the ladder to get the chance to play at the highest level and to earn a good living.

"I think we have to be careful not to fall into the category of quite a number of clubs who have been in the Premier League for a while and who tend to start spending more and more the longer they have been there.

"They think it's right to do that and they lose sight of the need to have young, hungry players coming through continually.

"We have got to be brave, to continue giving these young players without Premier League experience the chance to come in and thrive. We have to make sure we don't lose sight of that."

Assuming Swansea stay up, Rodgers will expect some significant cash to be spent on his squad as he looks to make the club feel at home among the elite.

Swansea are not about to start signing players in the £10 million bracket, but Rodgers will want the board to say yes when he thinks there is a deal to be done.

It is unlikely he will keep accepting it if moves for talented young players do not happen, as was the case with Peterborough's Ryan Bennett during last month's transfer window.

Swansea's task is to meet the demands of their manager without rolling the dice when it comes to the finances of the club.

Jenkins and Co will do their best, for they crave stability in the dugout having had their fair share of bosses over the past decade.

"You look back at the changes we have had to cope with over the past few years in terms of managers leaving and you see that we have had quite a lot to overcome as a club," Jenkins said. "There has been plenty for the players to get used to, but we have managed to get through that.

"Brendan has come in and brought the extra ingredients we all needed with his thoughts on football and his personality.

"He has given everybody a lift and taken the club forward, so naturally we want that to continue.

"As Brendan himself said, it was a simple decision when it came to sorting out the new contract and we are delighted that's all been done."

Whatever Swansea offer Rodgers, of course, they will not be able to compete on any level should one of the English game's super-clubs decide they want him at the helm.

Given the success he has enjoyed at the Liberty, Rodgers is bound to be mentioned when vacancies arise elsewhere.

Jenkins, though, points out that the lack of European football on the Northern Irishman's CV may count against him.

"A lot of the top clubs have always tried to appoint people with that experience," he said.

"It seems as though they see that as the right thing for their clubs as they are competing in the Champions League, and that takes out a number of young, hungry managers coming through. We can take some comfort from the fact that they don't seem to take risks."

Some comfort, maybe, but there are no certainties.

Rodgers's reputation is growing all the time and, if things keep progressing as they are now, an approach from elsewhere will be close to inevitable.

If and when that happens, Jenkins concedes, the key issue will not be what the clubs involved want but what Rodgers desires.

"Brendan has said himself that everything has gone right for him and his family in Swansea," he continued. "He has taken on board the philosophy of the club and is at home in the city, and how he feels about things will be crucial whatever happens in the future. Whatever approach there might be, 99 per cent of it comes down to what the manager thinks."