The Swansea City manager was basking in the glory of a 3-2 derby day victory over Cardiff when he stated that he was glad his team was being recognised at last.
Sousa believed that when he first came to the club nobody gave them credit – something that he set out to change. And spectacles like Saturday’s game at the Liberty he says will go a long way to changing that
Speaking to the Western Mail, Sousa said “Personally this was important
“From the beginning I said there is only one way for us to go. Victories like this reinforce that we are in a good way.
“In training, I see this every day, but it is only victories like this that give you the recognition that what we are doing is right.
“Important recognition from the press, from the fans, from other managers, gives us happiness because it means we are in a good way and it gives the convictions and confidence we need.
“It’s important because Swansea is so far away nobody knows where we are on the map.
“But when I came here one of the things I said was to change that. I want Swansea on the map, not just nationally but internationally.
“From the beginning I said to everyone straight away I have a great challenge and that is for the club to stay in the first 10,” said Sousa, Swansea doing just that at the moment after rising to a season-high ninth, two points off Cardiff in third. “This is still the target for this season. I’ve said that from the start.
“And it’s a big challenge because at the beginning people were saying we’d finish 17th, more or less, but the results have come and there is the opportunity for people to change what they write.
“I think the team can improve a lot and every game we still have to be ourselves and make it difficult for our opponents to beat us. Then, in the end, we will look at the points we have.
“Every game we look to win.”
“Hopefully this is what we are starting to change, this is what I try. It’s a fair way to achieve this, but it is what we want to do.”