Swansea 1-0 Aston Villa

Swansea 1-0 Aston Villa

Gylfi Sigurdsson 13

It was another of those days when Gylfi Sigurdsson demonstrated why he is such a class act when it comes to the art of taking free-kicks. On a damp afternoon in south Wales, when the rain was relentless from the first minute to the last, Sigurdsson’s exquisite free-kick proved the difference between these two sides as Swansea cemented their place in the top eight.

Aston Villa, however, will wonder how they failed to take anything from the game. The visitors were the better team after the interval and would have departed with the point they deserved but for a couple of outstanding saves from Lukasz Fabianski in injury time. Fabianski repelled Christian Benteke’s far post header and then, with Villa laying siege to the Swansea goal in desperate pursuit of an equaliser, showed sharp reflexes to deny Gabriel Agbonlahor. When Alan Hutton wasted another late chance, Villa knew that it was not going to be their day.

Sigurdsson’s opening goal was a beauty, a sumptuous free-kick, struck on a slight angle from a couple of yards outside the penalty, that arched into the top corner. While the shot was hit with power and superbly placed, questions will, however, be asked about whether Brad Guzan, who was covering that side of the goal, could have done more to keep the ball out.

Jefferson Montero won that free-kick after being brought down by Jores Okore in full flight – the first of several penetrative runs that the Ecuador international made in the opening 20 minutes. Indeed Okore must have been hugely relieved when Montero pulled up with a hamstring injury midway through the first half after leaving the Villa defender in his wake once more. Swansea lost their most dangerous outlet.

Villa’s threat was sporadic in the first half, which perhaps explained why Lambert replaced Aly Cissokho, a defender, with Andreas Weimann, a forward, at half-time and switched from 5-3-2 to 4-3-3. In that opening 45 minutes Agbonlahor thrashed wide from the edge of the area, and Benteke, trying to take a leaf out of Sigurdsson’s book, curled a whipped free-kick inches past the near upright.

With more impetus going forward, the visitors looked much more dangerous and took control of the match at the start of the second half. Weimann, linking well with Tom Cleverley, sidestepped Ashley Williams in the Swansea penalty area but was unable to generate enough power with his shot to seriously trouble Fabianski. Moments later Weimann was at it again, breaking down the right flank but failing, much to Benteke’s annoyance, to pick out a Villa player with a cross that needed to be stood up rather than struck low.

Swansea were being pinned back and forced to soak up pressure but a wonderful opportunity for a second goal presented itself following a sublime touch from Sigurdsson. Almost turning his back on play, the Icelander nonchalantly flicked the ball into the path of Ki Sung-yueng, who looked every bit a defensive midfielder in foreign territory as he snatched at the chance and blazed over. Then came Fabianski’s late double save.

Swansea City (4-2-3-1) Fabianski; Rangel, Williams, Fernández, Taylor; Shelvey (Carroll, 60), Ki; Dyer, Sigurdsson (Emnes, 76), Montero (Routledge, 22); Bony Subs not used Tremmel, Gomis, Bartley, Richards

Booked Shelvey

Aston Villa (5-3-2) Guzan; Hutton, Okore, Vlaar, Clark, Cissokho (Weimann, ht); Delph, Sánchez, Cleverley (Grealish, 76); Agbonlahor, Benteke Subs not used Given, Bacuna, Herd, N’Zogbia, Lowton

Booked Sánchez, Clark, Okore, Agbonlahor

Referee R East

Att 20,683

Source: Guardian