Smith rap Fer Leroy after Swans star dumps Villa
ANGRY Dean Smith tore into Leroy Fer after he helped dump Villa out of the Cup.
Fer was in superb form and set up two goals but the Villa boss claimed he should not have been on the pitch.
Smith said: “He could have had five cautions and it took to the 90th minute for the referee to give him one.
“Neil Taylor has just come back from a hamstring injury and he gets one right down the back of his shin and ankle and nothing gets done about it. “I am asking questions.
“Fer created a good pass for the second goal and a good bit of skill for the third but I’m amazed he was still on the pitch.”
Big problems are piling up for Smith, though, who is likely to lose top scorer Tammy Abraham next week. Abraham is thought to be ending his loan from Chelsea and switching to Wolves instead.
But Smith said: “I haven’t heard anything more. I believe Abraham was here today and I believe him to be in training on Monday.”
Whether he will need to find a replacement for 16-goal Abraham is a big worry. Villa’s fans didn’t wait to find out, walking out of Villa Park long before the end.
Fer took Villa apart, ruining the debut of £7million Croatian keeper Lovre Kalinic.
Villa’s only win in the last seven games was at Swansea in the Championship.
They also beat the Welshmen in the league at home – but never looked likely to make it a hat-trick.
Fer set up goals for Nathan Dyer and Jay Fulton after Courtney Baker-Richardson had got the Swans off and running in the second minute.
Dyer and sub Jay Fulton finished off the home side and Swansea boss Graham Potter saw nothing but good in Fer.
“I said to Fer afterwards I thought it was his best game,” said Potter.
“People forget that he’s come back from an Achilles rupture and missed a lot of last season.
“Now you are seeing a performance level closer to the Leroy Fer that I think is there.
“I am delighted with him and thought he was disciplined, although I am sure Dean Smith will say he got away with a couple of tackles as well.”
Smith made six changes for the tie, Potter just one and it showed as Swansea bossed the game.
Kalinic’s first job for Villa was to pick the ball out of the net after Baker-Richardson beat him from close range.
Dyer took Fer’s superb pass and danced through Villa’s defence before shooting under Kalinic to make it 2-0.
And Fer again showed his skills to set up Fulton to finish the game off.