...BUT IT’S A ROCK AND ROLL DAY FOR ANDRE

THE last time Swansea won a Premier League game 4-1, it was also against West Ham, and Andre Ayew excelled for Swansea on that occasion, too.

It was also the game that persuaded West Ham to part with £20m to sign the Ghanaian forward in the summer of 2016. The boardroom may shudder at that decision but Ayew is now back at Swansea and back to tormenting West Ham as an opponent. In tandem with his younger brother, Jordan, this was a devilish, high-energy display to which West Ham had no answer.

Andre won the penalty for Swansea’s fourth and Jordan converted. ‘We did not play with two brothers out there,’ manager Carlos Carvalhal said. ‘We had 11 brothers on the pitch.’

The Ayew brothers may have been inspired by one another’s company but Swansea’s success is a triumph of coaching and enthusiasm by Carvalhal. He embraces the quirks of British life.

Swansea’s Andy King, who scored the third goal, was part of the Leicester team that dramatically avoided relegation under Nigel Pearson in 2015. ‘They are a positive bunch of players with a positive manager,’ he said. ‘You see it on the pitch. You can see at some places that doom and gloom if teams are underachieving, but that is not the case here.’

For Swansea, this was a performance to savour. They overwhelmed West Ham with their defensive concentration, midfield intensity and the quality of their forward play. From front to back they were confident and bold. Alfie Mawson stepped out with purpose, Ki Sung-yueng bestrode the midfield and the Ayew brothers ran amok in attack.

This was Swansea’s seventh home victory in a row in all competitions — a run that has seen them rise up the Premier League and reach the FA Cup quarter-finals for the first time since 1964.

‘We had rock and roll today,’ Carvalhal said. ‘Sometimes you dance to the music your opponents give out to you, like when we played Liverpool and Arsenal. But today, we put out our own music.

‘In my car, I’ll be playing my friend Jon [McClure], who is in Reverend and the Makers. I have met them and I also like Arctic Monkeys. That’s my type of music: Sheffield music, indie music.’

In South Wales, Carvalhal is increasingly seen as the reverend and his players are the makers. West Ham were the unfortunate monkeys being made to dance in Arctic temperatures.

‘We are near our best,’ Carvalhal said. ‘We can improve. Football is not linear. When you build a house, sometimes things are not as you propose. Sometimes the wall falls down or the electricity is not working well and you must correct things. So we are always rebuilding and returning to correct mistakes. This will be the same even in Barcelona.’

It has been a mighty effort. Swansea have won five and drawn two of Carvalhal’s first nine games in charge. The 17 points gained equal Manchester United’s return from their past nine and are six more than Chelsea have managed in the same period. Their next three games include Huddersfield and West Brom. Swansea sense opportunity.

‘It is too easy for me to say, “I expected it to go like this as I’m a magic manager”. No, this is work.’