A MINIMUM of 10 players that are out of contract at Swindon Town this summer will leave the club, with manager Richie Wellens revealing he will only offer an extension to a maximum of four players whose deals are set to expire.

Kyle Knoyle and Dion Conroy have already been offered the chance to extend their stay at SN1, but of the other 12 permanent players whose time at SN1 is due to end in June – only a maximum of two will stay.

Wellens’ comments were voiced two days after he announced a squad clear out is necessary in the summer to ensure his goal of earning promotion back into League One becomes a realistic possibility.

It means Wellens will pick two players from the group of Olly Lancashire, James Dunne, Danny Rose, Marc Richards, Martin Smith, Jak McCourt, Ellis Iandolo, Will Henry, Jordan Young and Jordan Edwards to take into next season.

“Dion (Conroy) and Kyle (Knoyle) - I want an answer as quick as possible, I don’t want them messing me around,” said Wellens.

“Because if it’s a no, then we can move on.

“But, apart from those two, there won’t be many (that stay). I’ve sugar coated things for long enough.

“I want a ruthless streak in my time. If I’m not ruthless and the players see that, then how do I expect my players to follow that.

“There might be one or two offered contracts, but that would be the most. It’s probably the right time to say it, as it gives players enough time to find another club.”

The 39-year-old also said he will look to offload as many as three players that are under contract in the summer.

Keshi Anderson, Kaiyne Woolery, Michael Doughty, Toumani Diagouraga and Tom Broadbent are the only five players under contract at the County Ground next season that have played under Wellens – excluding Luke McCormick who signed a fresh deal last month.

Wellens plans to cut the current squad from 33 players down to 20 – meaning outs should be expected.

He added: “I want the group smaller – I only need 20 players, 18 outfield and two goalkeepers.

“We’ll try and introduce one or two youngsters, then we have five loans available if we need them.

“At the moment, if you look at the squad not in the starting XI – the wage bill from that group is more than the starting team.

“To have 33 in a squad is madness. We had to get a few in because I thought we were in a tricky situation, and we needed to strengthen the team with some experience.

“Kyle Bennett and Theo Robinson were the only two signings we made in terms of established players.

“Thirty three is too much as this level – let’s lower the numbers and increase the quality. I want to put money in the right areas - wingers that will score and create, strikers that are going to score and centre backs that are going to defend the box well.

“We can fill the other areas accordingly with loan signings.”