Cullen targets another final
Liam Cullen has urged Swansea City Under-23s to draw inspiration from the notable scalps they have claimed this season ahead of their Premier League Cup semi-final showdown with Everton at the Liberty.
The young Swans welcome the newly crowned Premier League 2 Division One champions to SA1 this afternoon for a game Cullen describes as their “biggest of the season.”
You can watch the action LIVE on swanseacity.com from 12pm.
Alternatively, tickets are still available for just £1 and can be purchased HERE.
The development side, who lifted the trophy in 2017 and reached the final 12 months later, have enjoyed a remarkable run to the last four for a third year running.
After topping Group E ahead of Wolverhampton Wanderers on goal difference, they saw off Aston Villa in the last 16 before beating Nottingham Forest on penalties in the quarter-finals.
The Swans know they will be in for another tough game this afternoon against an Everton side that are chasing the league-and-cup double.
However, this season, they have demonstrated what it takes to claim a scalp, having beaten the likes of AFC Wimbledon and Charlton Athletic in the Checkatrade Trophy, as well as Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea in Premier League 2.
And Cullen has urged his team-mates to draw inspiration from those results in their bid for another huge victory today.
“It’s probably our biggest game of the season. We want to reach that final for the third time in as many years,” the under-23s striker said.
“It’s something we’ve been thinking about since we beat Forest in the quarter-finals.
“We’ve proven we can beat the best teams over the years. This season, we’ve beaten Chelsea and Tottenham away. Hopefully, we can claim another big win here.”
The under-23s are aiming to end a difficult season on a high, having suffered relegation from Premier League 2 Division One last month.
Should they go all the way to the title, it would provide Cullen with his first major honour at this level.
The striker was still with the under-18s when they lifted the trophy in 2017, while he missed out on last year’s penalty shootout defeat to Villa.
And he admits that glory in this competition would give him and his team-mates a huge sense of pride.
“Hopefully, we can win the competition again. It would nice for us to get a winner’s medal, especially with the way our league campaign has gone,” he added.
“This would be my first honour with the under-23s. Obviously, I was hoping to do it last year, but it wasn’t meant to be. With a bit of luck, I’ll get my hands on a trophy this year.
“Not many people win Premier League competitions. Even though it is at under-23 level, it’s still a Premier League medal, so it would mean a lot to me and the rest of the boys.”
