CARLOS HAS
CARLOS Carvalhal thanked Sheffield Wednesday for a rousing reception after his “emotional” return to Hillsborough ended in stalemate.
Sacked in December after two successive play-off failures, the Portuguese was appointed by Swansea just three days later.
He has since transformed the fortunes of the Premier League strugglers, losing only one of his first 12 matches in charge and dumping both Wolves and Notts County out of the Cup to set up a replay with his former side.
While Wednesday fans were eager for change after a turgid autumn, they were never ungrateful for the progress Carvalhal wrought in his three years at Hillsborough.
The 52-year-old was applauded all the way into the stadium after stepping off the Swansea coach and, after a dour 0-0 devoid of major incident, admitted he was moved.
“I almost cried after the game when some fans came to talk with me,” he said. “It has been a very emotional day and I must say thank you to Sheffield Wednesday for the way they received me.
“This is the beauty of football. The part of football I love. If a player or a manager gives 100 per cent to a club, he will one day get compensation.
“For me, the love I felt today was big compensation for everything I gave to Wednesday. I am very proud of this moment and it is something I will never forget in my life.
“It was not an easy moment for me when we broke the contract. They were hard days. But when you look back at everything we did – the two play-offs, the fantastic football – you are proud. And I hope that in five or ten years if I come back here, I will be received even better than now.”
It was a good thing this game had a subplot because the primary narrative was a stone-cold shocker.
Carvalhal, whose side have required a replay in every round, described the Swans’ FA Cup run as “like Police Academy” in the sense that it features a seemingly unending series of sequels.
Maybe, though, he simply meant the franchise got worse the longer it ran. Either way, the