Swansea City head coach Luke Williams praised his team’s all-round performance after a superb 2-1 victory against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light, secured by a brace from Ronald – the Brazilian’s first goals for the club.
Ronald opened the scoring by converting a rebound at the end of an impressive team move, before doubling his tally with a clinical volley from a Joe Allen pass.
The Swans were dominant in the first half, creating numerous chances and could have scored more goals. Although Sunderland’s Luke O’Nien pulled one back late in the game, Swansea showed resilience to secure the win and extend their unbeaten run at Sunderland to 7 games.
Williams was particularly pleased with the team’s first-half display, describing it as the best 45 minutes of his tenure so far.
“I am really happy. I think in the first half, with the ball, we were very aggressive and very attacking,” Williams said. “In the second half, you could see the character and determination to protect the lead, so it was a pretty rounded performance.”
He emphasized the team’s desire to be fluid with the ball and aggressive in pressing, citing the goals as examples of their approach.
The celebration with the fans after the game was a special moment, but Williams made sure to credit the players for their hard work and dedication.
“It’s not for me to be the one doing the fist bumps and things like that because all I have done is stand at the side of the pitch and watch,” he said. “The players are the ones who leave everything out there. Ronald is out there with a plug up his nose and blood running on his shirt, and he has scored the two great goals to help us win.”
Williams emphasized that the players deserved the credit for their performance and the win.
The Head Coach also had special praise for Kyle Naughton, who joined a select group of players to have made 300 appearances for the Swans.
“And talking about Kyle Naughton is one of my favourite things to do. I just think he is incredible, he is a class act.
“He has had a bit of a disjointed season, he is picking up a lot of minutes and these games in the Championship are ferocious. The way he is coming through them is incredible.
“The achievement to play 300 games for any club is fantastic, what more can we say other than that it is lovely to have him in our squad and to be able to watch him play football.”
Here is Luke Williams’ full post-match reaction following the Swans win at the Stadium of Light:
Feature image credit: Swansea City Football Club