Swans v Middlesborough | Vital Football

Swans v Middlesborough

Routledge still out injured and unavailable for Saturday.
Tom Carroll serves a one match ban after being sent off on Wed night for the first time in his career. No other fresh injury worries.
 
Swans home form last 6 matches ( bottom of the table, 24th out of 24):
W1 D1 L4 F4 A9 GD -5 Pts4
Last time out on Wed night: Swans 1 - Blackburn 1

Boro away form last 6 matches:
W0 D3 L3 F4 A11 GD -7 Pts3
Last time out on Tues night: Forest 1 - Boro1

One win between the pair of them in 12 matches!
 
Just to mention the Blackburn match again, I wonder if there will be any repercussions, with Steve Cooper claiming that referee Jeremy Simpson (who by the way lives near Blackburn, I wonder if he travelled down on their team bus?) will probably be officiating in the Conference next season.

Lancashire official Simpson left Cooper seething after ignoring two penalty appeals in the second half, first when Bradley Dack handballed and then for a Ryan Nyambe challenge on Sam Surridge.
“I’ve seen the penalty decision back for handball and it’s just a massive error from the
referee. He knew it hit his hand – he has said that to me – and his hand isn’t next to him, it’s out.
I get it if there are loads of players around him, but it’s travelled 15 yards before it’s hit his hand.”


Cooper said Simpson’s failure to give Swansea a penalty following the Dack handball led to further refereeing mistakes.
“Sam Surridge gets pulled down and, anywhere else on the pitch, it’s a penalty. He was nervous. I was very respectful afterwards because I knew he was uncomfortable with his night.
He’s a professional and I want him to progress, but we have to be honest and unfortunately he’s going to get marked down.”


“Because he knows he made the error he’s then made the poor red card decisions. He’s lost his composure really. He’s made four major decisions and he’s got them fundamentally wrong.”

Both teams finished with ten-men, Tom Carroll picking up a second yellow and Dack doing the same for Rovers.
 
Swansea City 3 - Middlesboro 1
Ayew 22’ (pen) - Tavernier 59’
Ayew 71’
Surridge 73’


Ayew with two goals, one a penalty, and a goal from Surridge gave us the home win we desperately needed.
Boro equalised on 59’ to cancel out our penalty goal of the first half and everybody groaned as we all thought here we go again.
But there was a twist to come in the game with two Boro players sent off on 63’ (sub Browne - lunge on Hoorn) and 77’ (McNair - elbow on Grimes), which altered the game in our favour.
Ayew put us ahead against 10 men on 71’, and Boro then went down to 9 men six mins later with a second sending off
Surprisingly we did not/could not capitalise on this and boost our goal difference, and no further goals were scored in the following 28 mins of play.
 
Steve Cooper:
"I'm pleased for the fans, it's been too long, we know that. The team and I have not shied away from the fact we have not won enough games at home this season.
So, however it came, it was important we won a game here and in general it is a small step back to the team we want to be at the Liberty.
I felt we were the better team and deserved to win, I think we were the team who wanted to play with the ball and try and create proper chances. I would have liked more of it, truth be told.
In terms of the red cards, with no disrespect to Jonathan Woodgate or Middlesbrough, I thought they were both red cards."


Jonathan Woodgate
“When we got back into it at 1-1 there was only one team that was going to go on and win the game.
The penalty is not a penalty. Dael Fry gets the ball and it is not a foul at all on Andre Ayew.
At 1-1 we were looking good, but then there is the decision from Marcus Browne to make a
horrific tackle. I absolutely can't condone that. It's a terrible tackle and it's a straight red card. He has let his team down.
The ill-discipline from Marcus has cost us the game. It's a rash decision and a two-footed tackle. It's very frustrating, but we will definitely appeal Paddy McNair’s red card. Marcus will get fined as it was a good team performance apart from the tackle."
 
Statistics Swansea - Middlesborough:
Possession: 62% - 38%
Shots: 10 - 8
On Target: 7 - 3
Corners: 6 - 6
Fouls: 13 - 19
Cards: 2Y - 1Y 2R
Ref: Dean Whitestone 6/10

Att: 14,625
 
Andre Ayew has challenged the Swans to build on their morale-boosting win over Middlesbrough:
“We must continue working hard, we can’t get carried away, it’s only a victory. It’s a good one but we needed it after a tough week. We started really badly but it’s ended well. We need to focus on what’s coming.
We’ve had a series of bad results, so we now need to get a series of good results to catch up.
We know it’s important to win in front of our great fans. They love the club with all their hearts and always come in their numbers – whether things are going well or not. They have been disappointed with how results have gone lately because we haven’t got good results but, for me, that’s normal when they see the quality of players that we have.
So to get the victory is good. I hope it’s the beginning of a series of wins”
Ayew’s brace took his tally to nine goals for the season, and he has now netted three times in the space of three days after his header against Blackburn in midweek.
 
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Team:
27 Woodman, 23 Roberts, 44 Cabango, 5 van der Hoorn,

24 Bidwell, 28 Byers (Fulton 60'), 8 Grimes, 21 Dhanda( McKay 68'),
22 Ayew, 19 Surridge, 10 Celina (John 72')


Subs:
1 Nordfeldt, 3 John, 6 Fulton, 7 McKay, 9 Baston, 18 Kalulu,

26 Naughton
 
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