Swansea claimed the south Wales derby bragging rights with a 2-0 win against Cardiff. Liam Cullen volleyed beyond Ethan Horvath – his sixth goal of the season – after 34 minutes in what was a dominant first-half showing from Swansea. Cullen then missed a penalty in the 51st minute as Cardiff improved in the second half, but Jamal Lowe struck in injury-time to earn Luke Williams’ team all three points.
Lowe’s accomplishment resulted in the Swans achieving two consecutive victories at home for the first time with Williams as their coach. However, the opponent’s loss put an end to their streak of four consecutive wins.
Swansea displayed their determination to avenge their 2-0 defeat in the previous match by making a strong start, with early attempts from Harry Darling and Cullen. Meanwhile, Cardiff appeared on edge and came close to conceding in the 16th minute when Jamie Paterson’s cross reached an unmarked Darling, but his header hit the crossbar.
The hosts were extremely angry after Yakou Méïté was not given a red card for pushing his head into Darling’s face. Eventually, Cardiff began to calm down and Dimitrios Goutas missed a goal opportunity from a corner kick taken by David Turnbull.
Swansea finally achieved their deserved lead in the match thanks to an exceptional play by their recent acquisition, Ronald. The talented Brazilian was able to chip the ball over Josh Wilson-Esbrand before sprinting 40 yards forward and passing to Kyle Naughton.
The skilled defender’s lofted pass located Cullen, who calmly volleyed the ball past Horvath and into the back of the net, causing the local fans to erupt with excitement.
Ronald took possession and searched for a second goal for the Swans, bringing joy to Erol Bulut who must surely have been satisfied to reach the halfway point with his team only one goal behind. The manager of Cardiff, Rubin Colwill and Callum O’Dowda, substituted Turnbull and Meite, but unfortunately, they got off to a terrible start in the second half when Perry Ng committed a foul by pulling down Ronald and conceding a penalty.
Unfortunately, despite being the hero of the first half with a goal, Cullen was unable to score on a penalty kick, giving Cardiff a glimmer of hope. This miss boosted Cardiff’s morale, as evidenced by Nat Phillips’ attempted header and Colwill’s powerful shot over the goal, which were among the visitors’ first real offensive attempts.
“It was Bulut’s team who had control of the ball for longer periods of time, with Ollie Tanner and Josh Key taking the place of Josh Bowler and Naughton. Even though Ronald was now on the left side, he continued to demonstrate his skill, presenting a beautiful pass to Cullen who unfortunately missed with a header.”
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Oli Cooper, Lowe, and Jay Fulton all entered the game as substitutes. Additionally, Aaron Ramsey made his return after being sidelined for a month, with 19 minutes remaining in the game.
In the end, the game became tense as Horvath easily caught Matt Grimes’ free kick, and Goutas then headed over on the opposite side.
Lowe managed to get past Horvath and scored a goal in the sixth minute of extra time, securing Swansea’s third consecutive victory against their local rivals. This loss for the rivals hindered their chances of securing a spot in the Championship playoffs.
The afternoon matches will be added to this story at a later time.
Source: theguardian.com
