Swansea City U23s handed tough PL International Cup draw

Swansea City Under-23s will face Everton, Porto and PSV Eindhoven in Group D of this season’s Premier League International Cup.

The development side have been handed a tough assignment in the annual European club competition, in which 12 international teams are invited to compete alongside 12 category one academy sides.

Everton enter the tournament fresh from winning the league-and-cup double last season – during which they beat the Swans in the Premier League Cup semi-finals at the Liberty Stadium.

Two-time Premier League International Cup champions Porto also overcame the Swans on the way to lifting the trophy in 2017, while PSV were runners-up to Villarreal the previous year.

The young Swans are aiming to progress beyond the group stage of the competition for the first time since reaching the semi-finals three seasons ago.

Despite rescuing a 1-1 draw against Villarreal B in their opening match of last year’s Premier League International Cup, defeats against Hertha Berlin II and Liverpool condemned them to a group-stage exit.

The dates for this season’s fixtures are yet to be confirmed.