Matos 'a breath of fresh air' after Bellamy boost

Liam Cullen has described Vitor Matos as a "breath of fresh air" but says Swansea City's players must take some responsibility for the slump in form which saw Alan Sheehan lose his job.

Swansea go to Stoke City on Saturday (12:30 GMT) with spirits lifted by home victories over Oxford and Portsmouth, the Welsh side's first back-to-back league wins this season.

While he acknowledges there is much work to do before Swansea can cast thoughts of a relegation battle aside, Cullen believes Matos' team are heading in the right direction.

"I think the mood has definitely changed within the training ground between players and staff," the Wales international says.

"The manager has been a breath of fresh air. He's such an energetic guy. He's so upbeat, he's so positive all the time and to be honest, I think that's exactly what we needed.

"Obviously the results didn't go our way in his first two games [against Derby and West Brom], but I think people are starting to see now the type of team that he wants and hopefully that's a successful one."

Swansea had won only once in 11 matches in all competitions before they halted a five-game Championship losing streak by beating Oxford last weekend, and they backed up that success by beating Portsmouth in midweek.

Cullen says the key focus during the early days of the Matos era has been counter-pressing, which is perhaps no great surprise given that the Portuguese spent five years working alongside Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool.

"Obviously you can't work on everything at once straight away, so I think it was about him laying his foundations first and foremost and then we can build from that good platform that he set," Cullen adds.

"We're still not the finished article in terms of the foundations that he's laid, but we've got off to a decent start."

'Players' job to perform'

Sheehan departed just over a month ago, following a miserable performance in the 4-1 home thrashing by Ipswich.

Cullen says Swansea "hit a tough period that wasn't good enough from the squad" and which prompted the end of the Sheehan era.

"I think you have to take some responsibility when a manager is sacked, because ultimately it's your job to go out there and perform," the 26-year-old adds.

"Managers can give you all the tactics in the world but it's up to the 11 on the pitch and the boys who come on every week to go and deliver and that wasn't the case with the lads.

"We knew we weren't good enough and obviously the club decided to make a change."

A striker no more

Cullen's hope is that after their alarming drop in form, Swansea have "closed that book now".

There are stern tests to come, with Wrexham at home to follow after Stoke before a daunting trip to Coventry City on 26 December.

But Swansea are looking ahead with renewed confidence after two positive results, the second of which arrived courtesy of Cullen's sparkling late winner.

It was just a second goal in 20 club appearances this season – eight of which have been starts – for a player who grew up as a centre-forward in Swansea's academy but now sees himself operating in a different role.

"I enjoy my football more behind the striker to be honest," Cullen says.

"It's where I play my football for Wales. I've adapted my game to play in there.

"It's been a little bit up and down for me [this season] but hopefully now I can put a run together and start putting in some good consistent performances."

Bellamy's verdict 'nice to hear'

Cullen's positional shift is partly down to Wales boss Craig Bellamy, who sees him as an attacking midfielder who can also fill an even deeper role when required as opposed to a centre-forward.

Bellamy is a big admirer of Cullen, hence he brought up "nonsense about him" in the wake of Wales' 7-1 hammering of North Macedonia in November.

Cullen says he tries to avoid social media, but is aware of what Bellamy said because it was highlighted by friends and family.

"It obviously gives you a bit of confidence and it's really nice to see and hear," Cullen says.

"He's given me that confidence and that freedom when I play in that team to just go and express myself and I think people can see how much I enjoy playing in his team.

"The attention to detail, the consistency of the level of coaching and the level that he gets the team at every camp day in and day out. I love working with him."

Eyes on the World Cup prize

Having established himself with Wales, Cullen's next international goal is the 2026 World Cup.

Wales play Bosnia-Herzegovina in the play-off semi-finals in March before a potential home final against either Italy or Northern Ireland.

Cullen was cheering Wales on during the 2022 World Cup, when he watched the draw with USA in a Swansea fan park "with my bucket hat" before following the other matches from a Swans training camp in Scotland.

Now the chance to play at the biggest tournament of all is tantalisingly close.

"I wasn't at the last World Cup so I'm desperate to go to one, and I think the lads who went are desperate to go and put the last one right because they were disappointed with how it went," Cullen said.

• Swansea's Cullen urged to 'find joy' by boss Matos
• Latest Swansea City news, analysis and fan views
• Listen to the latest Swansea City chat and interviews on BBC Sounds

"So we're all hoping that we're all going into March in form and fit and hoping to win two games."

For the moment, Bosnia can wait, with the immediate focus on a trip to the Bet365 Stadium.

Cullen, one of Swansea's longest-serving players, is well aware of the challenge that awaits at a ground where they have managed only one victory in the past 14 visits.

But Matos' players will travel with more belief now than they have had for much of this campaign.

"The lads are smiling," Cullen says. "Confidence is back and hopefully we can carry that on."