Guus Hiddink rubbished suggestions the appointment of Antonio Conte affected Chelsea’s performance as they slumped to defeat in Swansea.

Conte was this week confirmed as the club’s next manager on a three-year contract as he prepares to leave his post as Italy boss this summer.

Much of the talk in the build-up to the 1-0 loss at the Liberty Stadium centred around the incoming Blues chief and took the focus away from the current incumbent.

This was Hiddink’s first defeat since returning as interim manager in December and Chelsea’s first ever loss to the Swans in Premier League history.

However, the Dutch supremo insists the result had nothing to do with the considerable shadow cast by his eventual successor at Stamford Bridge.

He said: "I don't think so.

"What we did in the second half was good. I don't think they had it in mind to look to next season."

Chelsea travelled to Wales without several key players due to injury as the likes of John Terry, Nemanja Matic and Eden Hazard missed out.

It gave Hiddink another opportunity to blood some of the club’s youngsters, including Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Matt Miazga, giving the interim boss one positive to take away.

Swansea 1-0 Chelsea in pictures:

He added: “"Every defeat hurts but everyone knows the situation we are in, so there's a positive side to bringing in youngsters and seeing what they can do.

“We defended poorly and gave Sigurdsson a very free chance. We were attacking, attacking, but in the final third we were not sharp enough."

Swansea manager Francesco Guidolin was thrilled to see Gylfi Sigurdsson's first-half strike seal the club’s maiden league triumph over the Blues.

He said: "This is the first victory in the Premier League for Swansea against Chelsea and I am happy and proud we played very well in the first half.

"It's a very important win for our fans. It's a good afternoon for our players, our club and our fans. Jefferson Montero is an important player for us.

“Safety is almost real, but I hope to take other points in the next weeks because it's important to finish well."

Read More: Five things we learnt from Hiddink's first Premier League loss

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