Bafétimbi Gomis strikes for Swansea to end Aston Villa resurgence
Aston Villa 0 - 1 Swansea
Bafetimbi Gomis 87
Swansea's Bafétimbi Gomis, centre, celebrates against Aston Villa in the Premier League
Tim Sherwood had targeted the victory that would give his players some “breathing space” in their battle against relegation but familiar failings resurfaced on a chastening afternoon for the Aston Villa manager. Toothless up front, Villa were undone by a classic counter-attack in the 87th minute when Bafétimbi Gomis, who had squandered a hatful of chances and cut a frustrated figure for long periods, slid home Jefferson Montero’s inch-perfect cross.
This was the Villa of old rather than the team that swept aside Sunderland at the Stadium of Light. Chasing a fourth consecutive win in all competitions, Sherwood’s side were sluggish and offered little as an attacking force on a bitterly cold afternoon in the Midlands. The only consolation for Villa was that Burnley’s defeat at Southampton means that they remain three points above the drop zone.
Swansea have no such concerns. After back-to-back defeats against Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool, Garry Monk’s side picked up a win that keeps them on course to pass the 47-point barrier and set a new club record. Wayne Routledge should have added a second in the dying moments when he sprinted clear but Brad Guzan came off his line to smother.
After starting like a house on fire at Sunderland last Saturday, Villa struggled to light the touch paper here. It was 34 minutes before they registered a shot on goal and by that point Swansea had failed to take a couple of excellent chances at the other end, with Gomis letting Villa off the hook. A smattering of boos at the half-time whistle reflected the disappointment among some home supporters.
Swansea’s first opportunity arrived inside six minutes following a fine move down their left flank. Receiving possession from Jonjo Shelvey just outside the Villa area, Gylfi Sigurdsson showed some neat footwork before threading a lovely pass that released Neil Taylor. Taylor’s cut-back from close to the byline picked out Gomis but the Frenchman’s left-footed shot from about eight yards was blocked by Brad Guzan.
With Villa playing a high defensive line, there was space in behind for Swansea to exploit but Gomis lacked the pace to take advantage. Shelvey played the Swansea striker through in the 14th minute and for a moment opportunity knocked but Gomis never showed any conviction, tried to come inside and shift the ball on to his favoured left foot and the chance was gone.
Apart from a few driving runs from Charles N’Zogbia that roused the Villa fans, Sherwood’s team looked flat and short of ideas. Tom Cleverley limped off with a groin injury after only 25 minutes, forcing an early change, but Villa continued to struggle to play with any fluency.
Their best moment in the first half arrived when Scott Sinclair set Fabian Delph free in the inside-left channel and the Villa captain struck an angled left-footed shot that Lukasz Fabianski repelled at the near post. Two minutes later there was another reprieve for Villa at the other end when Ciaran Clark cleared Wayne Routledge’s shot off the line.
A miskick from Sinclair and a couple of chances for Swansea shortly after the interval suggested that the second half could follow a similar pattern to the first. Sigurdsson’s 30-yard free-kick forced Guzan into a fingertip save and moments later Gomis ought to have done better with a far-post header from Routledge’s inviting centre. The Frenchman was inside the six-yard box and towering over the Villa defence when he nodded over.
At least a dour game was starting to flicker into life and produce a bit more goalmouth action. Gabriel Agbonlahor had his head in his hands in the 57th minute after Taylor made a superbly-timed challenge to deflect the Villa striker’s shot, from just outside the six-yard box, past the upright. Sinclair, playing against his former club, also skidded a low effort across the face of goal.
Swansea had started to lose their way, prompting Monk to withdrew Sigurdsson, bring on Montero and switch to a 4-2-3-1 formation. Montero’s pace immediately caused Villa problems, with one raid down the left carving out a chance for Gomis only for the forward to see Clark produce a timely block. When the two Swansea players combined again with three minutes remaining, Gomis made no mistake from eight yards.
Guardian
