Swansea v Cardiff: Cullen eyes another derby moment to treasure

Swansea City will include derby debutants this weekend from South Korea, north west Portugal and north east Slovenia.

There may be a new faces from France and Olympiakos, too, while Swansea’s former Chile Under-20 international goalkeeper will get his first taste of a collision with Cardiff City.

And then there will be the homegrown players, for whom a meeting with Cardiff has been the biggest fixture on the calendar ever since their days in Swansea’s academy.

Joe Allen, who originally joined Swansea as a 10-year-old, Ollie Cooper, who first represented the club at under-12 level, and Ben Cabango, who signed at the age of 14, know all about the Cardiff rivalry.

But no player who will be involved in the latest meeting with Cardiff has a longer association with Swansea than Liam Cullen.

The striker from Kilgetty joined Swansea as an eight-year-old. He faced Cardiff on numerous occasions while emerging as a promising goalscorer in the Swans’ youth ranks.

Now aged 25, he will hope to start a senior south Wales derby for the third time on Sunday.

On the two previous occasions when he has been picked from the start against the Bluebirds, Cullen has scored.

“Obviously being a player who loves this club, the game means a lot to me, so it’s very nice to score in it,” Cullen said.

Cullen has made five derby appearances to date. His first came as a late substitute in a 3-0 Swansea home win in October 2021.

He featured once more as a substitute in a 2-0 home success the following season, before his first derby start – and first goal – came in a 3-2 victory at the Cardiff City Stadium in April 2023, when Cabango’s late winner sealed Swansea’s second successive league double against the neighbours.