Swansea City appoint Carlos Carvalhal as new manager

Posted Friday, December 29, 2017 by Skysports.com

Swansea City appoint Carlos Carvalhal as new manager
Carlos Carvalhal will be in charge of a Premier League side for the first time

Swansea City have named Carlos Carvalhal as their new manager until the end of the season with the option of an extension.

Carvalhal agreed the deal to take over at Swansea on Wednesday night and travelled to the club overnight to meet his new squad and take training on Thursday morning.

The 52-year-old Portuguese boss left Championship side Sheffield Wednesday at the weekend after they lost to Middlesbrough.

Carvalhal told Swansea's website they can avoid relegation from the top division despite being five points adrift of safety with 18 league games left this season.

He said: "In this moment, maybe if you ask 100 people who follow football, they will say Swansea are going to get relegated.

"Maybe some people will say we need a miracle. But when things are in the hands of men, it's not a miracle you need. We don't need divine help.

"We need strong commitment to move things forward. I promise we will try very hard to change things around.

"It will be a difficult challenge. We know the position we are in at the moment, but we can do it."

His first game in charge will be away to Watford on Saturday.

Swansea chairman Huw Jenkins said: "We felt we needed to get the managerial situation resolved as soon as possible and while the timing is not always perfect, we can look forward to the second half of the campaign with renewed optimism.

"Carlos' time at Sheffield Wednesday, which included securing two consecutive play-off places, highlighted that he has great character and personality to lead the squad and the football club, which is vital at such a crucial time.

Swansea City appoint Carlos Carvalhal as new manager
Carvalhal left Sheffield Wednesday on Christmas Eve after failing to win since the opening weekend of November.

"He is driven and ambitious and while he has a big challenge ahead of him, I know he will tackle it without fear," the Swansea chairman added.

Carvalhal takes over from previous manager Paul Clement who lost his job because of poor results.

Since Clement's sacking Leon Britton had been working as a player-caretaker manager, but it is unclear if the midfielder will remain on Carvalhal's coaching staff.

Carvalhal has managed 15 teams in four countries which includes Besiktas and Sporting Lisbon before he arrived in English football.