We will fight every inch of the way, says new boss Carvalhal
CARLOS Carvalhal has vowed his Swansea City side will not go down without a fight as he prepares to kick off his reign against Watford this afternoon.
The 52-year-old Portuguese was appointed as the Swans fifth fulltime manager in a little over two years on Thursday.
He succeeded Paul Clement following the departure of the former Derby boss on December 20; Carvalhal had himself lost his job at Sheffield Wednesday on Christmas Eve.
He takes over a side rooted to the foot of the Premier League table, five points from safety with just three wins from 20 games so far this season.
There will not be many backing the former Owls manager to oversee a staggering turnaround and ensure the Welsh club get to experience an eighth-straight season of top-flight football.
But he has made clear, whatever the final outcome, his focus will be on ensuring he sends his team out with a desire and intent to play aggressive, attacking football, saying he will not enjoy his job unless he is enjoying what he sees out on the pitch.
He insists there will be no thoughts of damage limitation or playing for draws, and wants to see that approach from the off at Vicarage Road this afternoon.
“Watford have had a period without wins until their last game, but they are a good, organised team and we will do our best to play as I like and fight for the three points.
“You will hear me say often we will always fight for three points, I don’t play to draw any game. I prepare the team to win. That’s what we will do against all opponents.
“I have taken training and we gave some ideas to the players.
“In a short time we try to move things forward and show them how we want to play and what we want to see from them. As I told you before, I am a football romantic and I like to see good football. I don’t enjoy it if my teams don’t play good football.
“Good football doesn’t means controlling the ball all the time, it means we must be accurate on goal.
“I am a very positive person and I know if you asked 100 people, other than Swansea fans, if they are going to get relegated, this is what they are thinking.
“They are five points adrift, the team aren’t playing good football, they aren’t scoring or creating chances.
“Nobody has many expectations of Swansea and is betting they will go down. We can change things. “That’s what we believe. We can improve the players and create a new dynamic. We can promise nothing, but we will try very hard.
“We know we have the ability to do that, let’s see if the players can show the character and commitment. They need to give a good answer on that in the future.”
But Carvalhal was quick to point out he does not want to see football that is all style and no substance, telling his players there will be no substitute for hard work and graft in his vision of how he wants the game to be played.
“It is all connected, you must be effective and disciplined to win games, but that is not the opposite of good football,” he said.
“We look to our players, I know how I want to play but my ideas must work for them.
“I try to achieve the maximum, that they give the maximum and create a chance to explore the creativity and freedom to play good football. A mix between organisation and getting better football, they are related.
“I tell the players ‘don’t be afraid to play, enjoy having the ball, work hard to get it back’. We need that urgently and we need to connect the 11 pieces to be like one.
“The one is more important than the 11 pieces. We need that connection urgently.
“What I am sure of is that we will take this opportunity with both hands, me and my staff. We will work very hard like we did in the past. We are here, we are not with our families. But we do this because we want to work. We will be here from morning to night, absolutely, all the days, because it’s what we like to do. We don’t do this and say ‘poor guys’, the opposite.
“We are doing what we like doing and enjoy what we are doing. I have a good staff and we will prepare the details and try to improve things because it’s a good opportunity to show our abilities and the way we can manage a team in the Premier League.
“We are sure that we are more than ready to work in the Premier League.”
Carvalhal could still be without Wilfried Bony and Ki Sung-Yueng for the clash with Marco Silva’s side, the striker had returned to training after a hamstring injury and was being assessed, but the South Korea midfielder is continuing to struggle with the calf problem that has kept him sidelined since the home defeat against Manchester City.