Monk's men too much for Martinez's on the night
Last night saw the Swans claim their first EVER victory over Everton. There can't be many records between Premier League clubs such as the one that was smashed last night, and it was always going to be a statistic which disappeared sooner rather than later, as Everton aren't a team the Swans should fear particularly - especially given our continued rise to prominence, and our knowledge of how Roberto Martinez likes to do things.
When the teams were announced it was clear both teams were taking the game seriously. Whereas in the last round Monk had changed ten players from the team which started the prior league match, last night we saw Ash, Fernandez, Taylor, Jonjo, Gylfi & Dyer retained, while Martinez picked a few players who were just coming back from injury. Bryan Oviedo returned from a broken leg, Darron Gibson returned after a year out with a knee injury, Tony Hibbert came back into the side after a spell out, while players like Muhammed Besic and Samuel Eto'o were given a chance to shine. Neither did, by the way.
The game itself was a strange one, but I took one overriding positive from it - even if it was a tenuous one. I felt that neither team played particularly well, but that we took our chances, and that's the sign of a team with quality throughout. In the first half Everton arguably had the better of things, and they certainly created more good attacking opportunities, but the opener came from Swansea's wingers who combined to great effect.
Montero tricked his way into the box down the left - a feat he'd repeat on numerous occasions as he gave Tony Hibbert problems all night - and his low centre found it's way to the back post with Nathan Dyer arriving. The winger coolly finished side-footed at the near post with Tim Howard scrambling to get across - that's four goals already this season and he's surely on track for his most prolific season ever. The goal came in the 28th minute, and it seemed to settle the Swans. Tom Carroll looked composed in midfield, and Sigurdsson was sitting deeper than usual, seemingly conserving energy. A wise move.
As mentioned it wasn't a game high on quality, and the rest of the first half was full of niggly fouls and half chances. Montero had an effort deflected for a corner, Distin had a header saved while Christian Atsu was giving Neil Taylor as many problems as Montero was giving Hibbert. Tayls had a tough time but he stuck to his task and in the end he had enough to snuff out the Ghanaian.
At half time Martinez replaced Eto'o with Lukaku, which showed how seriously he was taking the match. It almost paid dividends instantly too, but Lukaku's snap shot less than a minute after coming in was always going just over the bar. After that though the Swans seemed to acknowledge the need to push further up the field in order to relieve opposition pressure - something we haven't really been doing in the second half of matches this season - and once again Sigurdsson was key. He could be seen chasing down, harrying and pressuring the Everton defence into mistakes, so it was apt when, in the 69th minute, he got our second.
An inswinging cross from the left from Shelvey saw, for some reason, Sylvain Distin head against his own bar. Sigurdsson was the nearest man to the ball but he still had a lot to do - he adjusted excellently and angled a finish across goal into the bottom corner. Two-nil Swansea and all of a sudden things looked comfortable.
One thing, or person, I'd mention is James McCarthy. There seemed to be some beef between him and Shelvey (McCarthy came off the bench in 57th minute), and immediately there was a bit of a set-to between them. Shelvey was then booked for a foul on McCarthy two minutes later - a really innocuous yellow but a yellow nonetheless - but the ref then decided James McCarthy couldn't be cautioned no matter what.
Well, that's the only explanation I can give for choosing not to book him when, with Nathan Dyer looking to take a quick free kick a few minutes later, he not only stopped us taking the free kick but piled into Dyer from behind. For the second game in a row I feel we've had an appalling refereeing performance at the Liberty, and it does make you worry about the overall standard of officiating. If this is the best humans can do we need technology. Fast.
There was still time for the Swans to get their third though. Sigurdsson departed in the 85th minute to be replaced by Emnes, and he didn't take his time getting on the scoresheet. Less than a minute and a half in fact. Picking up a pass from Shelvey after he'd intercepted a wayward ball out of defence from Everton, he drifted forward, nobody closed him down, and he dispatched a finish into the bottom corner at Tim Howard's near post. That was all she wrote.
Things I'd pick up on from the match are as follows. Firstly, Jazz Richards was excellent. I've long said I think, based on his performances when called upon, that he can feel harshly done by to have been excluded at the expense of Tiendalli, and with Dwight absent from the eleven last night I can't now help but wonder if Monk feels the same too. Plus, for Jazz, it'd be understandable if he fancied his chances of being given a shot more under Monk than he did under Laudrup. I really hope, with Rangel looking a little shaky so far this season, that Jazz is given a chance over Dwight in the league, and I'm basing that on his performances when I've seen him - not on any romantic notions about including Swansea-born-and-bred players.
I also thought that, even though he was involved in two of our goals, Jonjo was wasteful in midfield. I thought on numerous occasions he chose the hollywood option when the simple option was both easier and far more sensible. He really needs to tone that down, as if he can, he'll be a very, very dangerous midfielder, capable of keeping things ticking over in midfield and also turning the screw when necessary. If he looks to ping a killer pass every time though, it will cause problems.
Federico Fernandez & Ash were excellent at the back, and the signs are really positive in terms of a budding partnership. They were markedly more in tune with each other than against Southampton on the weekend, and in time I'm sure we'll see them develop into a very steady central defensive pairing.
The other thing I'd mention is Sigurdsson staying on the field for eighty-five minutes. I'd say that right now, he's easily our most important player. Keeping him fit and fresh is surely imperative to us right now, so I was very, very surprised he stayed on the field as long as he did - especially given how hard he was pressing in the second half. You can't operate at the level he's been at so far this season if you're fatigued, so I hope he knows his limits and he's fine for Saturday's game against Sunderland.
So, through to the fourth round of the League Cup, and we've finally broken Everton's hoodoo over us. Not a bad evening's work all in all, and the squad will take confidence from the result after having lost their last two matches to Chelsea & Southampton. Hopefully we can continue our cerebral streak in front of goal and claim another victory at the Stadium of Light this weekend.