Daniel Williams benefiting from continental challenge

Swansea City Under-23s midfielder Daniel Williams says he is benefiting from the special opportunity of playing in the Premier League International Cup ahead of the development side’s showdown with Porto B on Wednesday.

The young Swans welcome the two-time champions to Landore for their second Group D fixture of this season’s competition, aiming to build on last week’s impressive 1-1 draw with PSV Eindhoven, as well as Sunday’s 1-0 win over Sunderland in Premier League 2 Division 2.

Williams, who played the full 90 minutes in both games, produced a notably accomplished performance against PSV alongside skipper Jack Evans in the heart of midfield.

The 18-year-old was up against the experienced figure of returning PSV captain Ibrahim Affelay, but was more than a match for the former Barcelona and Netherlands man.

And the first-year pro is hoping for more of the same against Porto, who beat the Swans on the way to lifting the trophy in the 2016-17 season.

“These competitions are brilliant for us. The opportunity to play against European opposition is a very privileged one; not many young players in Wales can say they have done that,” he said.

“Last week, I was playing against Affelay in the middle of the park. His wide range of experience was evident, and I picked up so many different things from him.

“It’s going to be a tough test but, as we showed against PSV, we’re not afraid of these big teams.

“You can see that things are beginning to fall into place for us. The more games we play, the more experience and understanding of each other we will gain.

“Hopefully, we can take our chances and get a win.”