Neutral observers in Seville on Wednesday evening marvelled at the comfort in possession of Spain’s players as the European champions eased aside England. In South Wales on Saturday, the English invaders from Fulham — players and fans alike — might have experienced a sharp sense of déjà vu with Swansea City displaying a similar exhibition of free-flowing football.

It should, though, come as no surprise. Roberto Martínez, their manager, is a proud Catalan and adopted Welshman. And at 35, a rising star in the league firmament. His squad includes half-a-dozen fellow Spaniards and the ‘Six Amigos’ add substantially to the Latin flavour and fervour at the Liberty Stadium.

Martínez’s modus operandi is simple. “My job is to allow them to enjoy their football,” he said. “It’s no secret. If I go home and see my players enjoying their football, I am happy. There are certain guidelines you have to follow, but, yes, you all have to be comfortable on the ball.”

At bit like Arsenal, perhaps, even down to the infuriating trait, when in a scoring position, of “why take one touch when you can take three?” But for overegging their FA Cup pudding, Swansea could be contemplating a quarter-final place rather than a fifth-round replay at Craven Cottage.

“Roberto has done a wonderful job and has a wonderful team,” Roy Hodgson, the veteran Fulham manager, said. “I am pretty sure his star will continue to rise.”

Swansea fell behind when Garry Monk, their captain, deflected in a corner by Paul Konchesky. It was a gross injustice, but the self-inflicted damage was repaired when Jason Scotland swivelled superbly to drive in his seventeenth goal of the season.

Scotland, the Trinidad & Tobago striker, joined Swansea from St Johnstone for £25,000 in 2007. “I thought Swansea was in England,” he said, “but I came down in the summer, it was 23 degrees and I thought: ‘Yeah, this is the place to be.’ ”

Swansea City (4-1-3-2): D de Vries 5 — Á Rangel 7, G Monk 6, A Williams 6, A Tate 6 — L Britton 7 — N Dyer 6, J Gómez 7, J Allen 6 (sub: G Bauza, 81min) — J Scotland 6, M Gower 7 (sub: A Orlandi, 71). Substitutes not used: D Cornell, O Tudur-Jones, F Bessone, A Serran, T Butler. Booked: Williams.

Fulham (4-4-2): M Schwarzer 6 — F Stoor 5, A Hughes 5, B Hangeland 5, P Konchesky 4 — S Davies 6, D Murphy 5, O Dacourt 5 (sub: C Dempsey, 60 6), Z Gera 4 — E Nevland 4 (sub: R Zamora, 75), A Johnson 5 (sub: J Gray, 85). Substitutes not used: P Zuberbühler, T Kallio, J Paintsil, R Milsom. Booked: Dacourt.