'We are competitive - we are strong'

Carlos Carvalhal reckons his rejuvenated Swansea City side are ready to compete in the Premier League as they get set for Saturday’s trip to Huddersfield Town.

The Swans have climbed from the bottom of the league to 13th place having taken 17 points from Carvalhal’s nine top-flight games in charge.

Despite the rousing run, the Swans are just three points clear of the drop zone ahead of this weekend’s clash with another side in the relegation mix, and Carvalhal has stressed that there is much work to do before his players can celebrate survival.

But the Swans boss does feel his team are a stronger proposition now than they were when he took over at the end of December.

“We have progressed in a lot of different ways,” he said.

“The quality of our game is progressing, the value of individual players is higher and the value of the collective is higher.

“We are very competitive now and we feel very strong.

“That does not mean we are better than any opponents, but we are in a position now where we can fight for the points against any other team in the Premier League.”

The Swans’ transformation under Carvalhal has been marked.

They had only 13 points from 20 league games before his appointment and had scored just 11 top-flight goals.

But Carvalhal insists the players should take a bow for the turnaround over the last couple of months.

“We are more competitive and more solid now,” he added.

“The players understand what we want and they have done some unbelievable work and they are doing all the things we ask of them.

“I am not tired of saying that I am very proud of all of them.”

A victory at Huddersfield this weekend would mean the Swans taking another big step towards preserving their Premier League status.

But the bottom of the table is so tight that a defeat could see them sucked right back into trouble.

Nevertheless, Carvalhal is a lot happier with his team’s league placing now than he was when he was appointed.

“When I arrived, things were really very bad,” he said.

“Nobody believed then that we could stay in the Premier League. We are not in such a bad position now, but we are still fighting for the same thing.

“We must keep fighting for points in every game and, if we can save the team from relegation, this will be something fantastic.”