Swansea Boss Reveals First Match 'Feels Like a Lifetime Ago' Ahead of Clash With Crystal Palace

Swansea boss Paul Clement has admitted that his January debut in the dugout in South Wales "feels like a lifetime ago" ahead of the club's clash with Crystal Palace on Saturday.

Clement was appointed Swans boss on January 3 this year as Swansea sat propping up the Premier League table after Christmas, following a brief and disastrous tenure from former United States boss Bob Bradley.

Pete Norton/GettyImages

The trip to Sam Allardyce's Crystal Palace that night ended with Clement making his premature touchline debut - alongside caretaker boss Alan Curtis - as the Swans beat their relegation rivals 2-1.

Speaking about that game and what he expects this weekend, according to a Daily Mail report, Clement said: "It was an important game and a positive result, but it seems a lifetime ago. It's a different situation, the context is different, but it's another important game for us.

"You want to try and get a positive result going into an international break. You don't want to spend two weeks hanging around after a bad result waiting to play again."

Clement also played up the importance of the momentum that his side gained from their clinical 4-1 midweek win over MK Dons, adding: "It's incredible what a win can do, I named a strong side because I wanted a win and a performance and we got that.

"When we won games last season it was because we were clinical and we managed to be ruthless at MK Dons. We are in a better mood going into the weekend because of that win and that will help us there."

Clement also had his say on the task ahead of Frank de Boer as he took over the Palace reigns in June, stating: "They have had two very different managers in him and (Sam) Allardyce, He is trying to change the culture and how they play and that is not an easy thing to do. It takes time to develop, but he was a great player and has a lot of experience as a manager too."