LIAM COOKS UP A DERBY TREAT
Cullen too hot to handle after chef’s inspiring Swans team talk
LIAM CULLEN aims to feast against Finland this week after devouring Cardiff thanks to Swansea’s head chef.
The striker revealed he was inspired by Chris Watkins, who cooked up an inspiring pre-match team talk, not long after serving his regular eve-of-game pasta.
Cullen scored his team’s decisive appetiser and hopes his hunger for winning will continue when Wales host the Finns in Thursday night’s crunch Euro 2024 play-off semi-final.
“Our chef gave the team talk before we went out for the game and I had goosebumps listening to him. It was unbelievable,” said Cullen.
“He reminded us what this fixture means, not just to everyone who’s in the building, but to the 20,000 who are out there and the people who obviously can’t come to the stadium.
“He has a little plaque at his counter in the canteen saying how many days until the next game against Cardiff. After the last one we lost, it said 184 days, so he’s a constant reminder of how much this game means.
“His pasta is also unbelievable, the day before a game.”
Local boy Cullen volleyed Swansea ahead and could even afford to miss a penalty before Jamal Lowe struck in stoppage time.
It means after Cardiff ’s win in September, normal service was resumed in a rivalry that has ended in Swansea winning eight of the last 11 meetings.
As well as his chef, Cullen also holds dressing room affection for head coach Luke Williams.
“I love him. Ever since he walked through the door, he’s been an absolute breath of fresh air,” he said.
“He’s brought a style that we all love, a real attacking style. The fans want to see us play exciting, attacking football.”
Defeat makes Cardiff ’s play-off hopes look improbable as the Bluebirds are now eight points adrift of sixth place with just eight games to play.
For a team on a four-game winning sequence, they were inexplicably short on self-belief.
Manager Erol Bulut seemed to concede the promotion dream had died when he said: “Sometimes you cannot have everything you want.
“But we won’t put our heads down. We have eight more games to play and we will try to give our best for our fans.”