FIVE TALKING POINTS FROM THE SWANS AGAINST THE EAGLES
SWANSEA City rose from the dead to end their miserable form in spectacular fashion with two goals in injury time to seal an incredible comeback win.
The Swans had looked doomed when, having gone 3-1 ahead with 22 minutes to go, Crystal Palace bounced back to take a 4-3 lead with just minutes left of the match.
But Fernando Llorente twice scored with 90 minutes already up to hand Swansea a first win since the opening day of the season and a first win under Bob Bradley.
The first home victory of the campaign also lifted Swansea off the bottom of the table and just two points from safety, with Palace now a relegation rival as their losing run extended to six.
Here’s what we learned... 1 – WHAT A GAME, WHAT A NOISE, WHAT A SPIRIT. BUT IT CAN BE ONLY THE START NEVER has the Liberty seen such a range of emotions, from the worry of the opening-half, to the relief of the comeback, the despair and disbelief of Palace’s fightback – and then the incredulous ecastsy of Llorente’s injury-time double.
Swansea’s confidence rose up and down through the match and when it was full of belief they showed they are capable of some quality football. But they cannot continue being so flimsy at the back, even if the fight showed that there may well be the heart there to survive a relegation battle.
Such determination had the backing of the home support who put frustrations aside and responded with the biggest noise this stadium has heard in the Premier League – but it cannot be a one off if Swansea are to move forward and now a consistency must come. 2 – ALAN PARDEW DOESN’T NEED MUCH OF A REASON TO BEMOAN HIS OWN FORTUNE PARDEW wasted little time complaining to referee Kevin Friend about the decision that led to Swansea’s leveller. He seemed to believe that Jason Puncheon was hard done by when he was penalised for blocking Cork on the edge of the area. Granted, there was no shove or malice, but the fact Puncheon didn’t make an attempt to play the ball suggested Friend got his decision spot on – thankfully for Swansea. 3 – THE PRESSURE ON SIGURDSSON’S SHOULDERS JUST BEFORE THAT 36TH MINUTE STRIKE MUST HAVE BEEN HUGE NOT only were Swansea struggling to find a way back into a game, there had been an angry, extended wait for him to take the free-kick as Palace’s players failed to retreat the distance set out by Friend, which seemed short of the full 10 yards before starting.
With Swansea players furious and the chances of getting the ball up and down from the white of the penalty area already difficult, there seemed only one place the Iceland ace could put it – and, boy, did he find it.
The celebration said everything about the joy and relief while the goal said everything about the skill of a player who has now scored direct from a free-kick three times since the start of last season – more than any other player in the Premier League. 4 - HAVING BEEN KEPT IN THE SIDE AFTER A GOOD EFFORT AT EVERTON, FEDERICO FERNANDEZ AND JORDI AMAT HAD THE CHANCE TO NAIL DOWN THEIR PLACES IN BOB BRADLEY’S SIDE HOWEVER, their first-half performance bore all the hallmarks of their struggles earlier in the season. Dragged out of position, unsure on the ball and outmuscled by Palace’s powerful strikeforce. The equaliser sparked them and their team-mates to life and they looked ready to improve, but Palace’s comeback brutally underlined the problems at the heart of Swansea’s season before being saved at the other end. 5 - SIGURDSSON AND FER LOOKED SET TO GRAB THE HEADLINES BEFORE THE LATE TURNAROUND – BUT MODOU BARROW IS BECOMING AN INCREASINGLY INFLUENTIAL FIGURE IN THIS SWANSEA SIDE. HIS pace scared poor Martin Kelly witless, and it was remarkable the full-back got away with umpteen fouls on the Gambian before being booked.
But Barrow’s display was not just about pace, he came away from the touchlines to wreak havoc infield and pressed well. He is now a key man and is enjoying the responsibility.