Know where it’s come from...’

“Villa Park is one of the best grounds in the country. The Holte End is fantastic.

“The only thing you could say about Villa is that it can go quiet quickly, but I don’t think it will at the weekend.

“No disrespect to Steve Bruce, but if he was still there the atmosphere would be different. That’s the challenge for us.”

Closer to home, Potter, who still has a photo of him standing inside the European Cup trophy alongside Ken McNaught and Peter Withe following Villa’s famous 1982 triumph, had something of a busman’s holiday over the international break.

He and assistant Billy Reid were at the Principality Stadium to watch Wales lose to Spain, a side the Swans boss admits serve as an inspiration for the sort of football he wants to see his teams play.

“I went to see Wales play Spain and also Wales Under-21s against Switzerland. The Spain game was my first time at Principality Stadium and I had to fight my way through the crowd to get in,” he said.

“It was a masterclass from Spain in terms of their positional play. They were a level above on the night and it was a learning experience for the young Welsh boys.

“It was tough for Connor Roberts and Declan John playing wingbacks against a 4-3-3 in terms of when to press. It was very brave of Wales to play that way and they’ll get better from that. Spain are a source of inspiration to me, definitely.”