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

There could also be new faces from France and Olympiakos, while Swansea’s former Chilean U20 international goalkeeper will face Cardiff City for the first time.

And then there are the home-grown players, for whom the clash with Cardiff is the biggest date on the calendar since their time at Swansea’s academy.

Joe Allen, who originally joined Swansea as a ten-year-old, Ollie Cooper, who initially represented the club in the under-12 team, and Ben Cabango, who signed at 14, know all about the rivalry between Cardiff and the club.

But none of the players who will play in the recent clash with Cardiff have been associated with Swansea for longer than Liam Cullen.

The striker from Kilgetty joined Swansea at the age of eight. He played against Cardiff on several occasions and developed into a promising goalscorer in the Swans’ youth teams.

Now 25 years old, he hopes to be in the starting eleven for the third time in a South Wales derby on Sunday.

On the two previous occasions when he started against the Bluebirds, Cullen has scored.

“As a player who loves his club, the game obviously means a lot to me, so it’s really nice to score a goal,” said Cullen.

Cullen has made five derby appearances to date, his first coming as a late substitute in Swansea’s 3-0 home win in October 2021.

He made one more appearance as a substitute in a 2-0 home win the following season, before making his first derby appearance and scoring his first goal in a 3-2 win at Cardiff City Stadium in April 2023. Cabango scored a late winner to seal Swansea’s second consecutive league double against their neighbours.