Swansea City manager Paul Clement has claimed that his side's 3-1 defeat to Chelsea could have been a different story had the referee awarded a penalty for a handball against Cesar Azpilicueta.

Fernando Llorente's goal right on the stroke of half time cancelled out Cesc Fabregas's opener at Stamford Bridge before second-half strikes from Pedro and Diego Costa sealed another three points for the runaway league leaders.

Clement insists that his side's confidence has not been dented by the result, but believes that they should have had a penalty when the scores were still level.

"Any game we don't win we are disappointed by. Chelsea are a very good side, they have fantastic quality and that was the difference. We didn't have a lot of chances but we came in at 1-1 for half time and for long periods we defended really well," he told BBC Sport.

"There was a big moment with the handball. I thought Cesar Azpilicueta handled it at 1-1, it's a clear handball. That gives you a chance to go 2-1 up with a penalty but three minutes later you're 2-1 down after a soft goal. Based on chances they deserved to win, but that was a big moment that didn't go our way, and who knows what might have happened?

"We've had a hard run of games. We've played Liverpool, Manchester City, Chelsea, and picked up some good wins on the way. Our confidence is not damaged by today. We have belief as we go into a very important run of games now. March is a very important month for us."

Despite the defeat, Swansea remain three points clear of the relegation zone.