Carvalhal hits the high notes for ‘epic point’
He is unlikely to win any manager of the year awards come May, but Carlos Carvalhal deserves his own prize: the surprise success of the season. Ask anyone at Swansea City how he has pulled them clear of trouble, and the answer will come back the same: a pragmatic approach on the pitch and a sense of humour off it.
Carvalhal looked every inch a panic appointment when he arrived at Swansea in December, four days after leaving Sheffield Wednesday as they struggled in the bottom half of the Championship.
Then something remarkable happened; a run of just two defeats in 16 games in all competitions has carried Swansea from a position of doom to one of hope.
Bottom of the Premier League and five points adrift of safety when Carvalhal came in, Swansea are now four points above the relegation zone and have an FA Cup quarter-final against Tottenham to look forward to.
“He’s done something right, hasn’t he?” said Swansea centreback Alfie Mawson. “Whatever he’s done, it’s working. We’re feeding off him.
“He’s funny, he’s a laugh, but when he gets down to business, he means business. He’s been a breath of fresh air. He’s full of character, full of energy, everything we’ve been thriving off.”
Carvalhal has attracted attention for his quirky quotes in interviews, describing his side’s victory over Liverpool in January to stopping a Formula One car in London traffic, and comparing Saturday’s hardwon point at Huddersfield to a night at the opera.
“They [Huddersfield] put the music on and it was opera because they put the ball right and left, right and left and it looked like opera,” he said.
“That’s why I say we win an epic point, because in opera sometimes the word ‘epic’ appears very often.”
Carvalhal is not afraid to be far more hard-headed with his tactics, though. The head coach bolted the doors to earn a point at Huddersfield, as his side played for almost 80 minutes with 10 men after Jordan Ayew was sent off for a high challenge on Jonathan Hogg.
Swansea avoided defeat despite failing to register a shot at goal or even win a corner, and with only around 19 per cent of possession – the second-lowest total in a Premier League match since records began in 2003.
Huddersfield had 30 efforts on goal, but only four on target. They still should have won; Swansea goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski somehow tipped Steve Mounie’s volley on to the bar, and Tom Ince headed against a post in the final minute.
Like Swansea, they are four points above the relegation zone, and optimistic. David Wagner, the head coach, said: “After that performance, and given where we are in the table after 30 games, I have zero worries.
“I have never been more confident about our chances of staying up than I am now.”