Luke Williams | No-one should be expecting anything other than a tough test

Head coach Luke Williams insists Swansea City will be taking nothing for granted when they host bottom club Portsmouth at the Swansea.com Stadium this afternoon (3pm).

The Swans return to home turf off the back of a battling victory over Derby County in midweek, which saw them climb into the top half of the Championship table.

Pompey, who were promoted as League One champions last term, currently sit bottom of the pile having not played a game since the international break after fixtures against Blackburn Rovers and Millwall were postponed.

And Williams has made clear the Swans will be expecting nothing other than a stern test from a team whose football he admires.

“We had a good result on Wednesday and we are looking forward to being back at home,” said the Swans boss.

“Having watched the game back, we showed the desire to defend as we have done many times, but we have to improve if we want to be the team we are desperate to be. 

“The players want to be that team, we all do, the margins are small but we still have to close them.

“We play a Portsmouth side who had an outstanding campaign last year.

“They play the game in a good way. I have seen them a couple of times, and what I have seen has been fantastic.

“They are adapting to the Championship and they are only going to improve as they go along.

“It is going to be a big challenge for us, we know that.

“You can talk about there being pressure because they are near the bottom, but there’s pressure on all of us in this division.

“There is pressure on those at the top, there is pressure on those of us trying to get to that level, and those trying to get away from the bottom.

“I don’t think anyone in the Championship feels relaxed, and they will only be looking up the table, so we have to expect a really tough game against a team who have plenty of time to get out of the position they are in.”