Callum Robinson’s brace inspired Cardiff City to a dominant south Wales derby victory, as Swansea City delivered a dismal performance at the Cardiff City Stadium.
After a goalless first half, Robinson struck twice in six minutes to put the Bluebirds in control before Dimitrios Goutas’ header sealed the win.
The Swans were unrecognisable from previous Swansea teams, who had won five of the previous seven derbies, and were completely outplayed, as Cardiff secured only their fifth victory in 14 meetings against their bitter rivals.
The Swans started brightly and dominated possession, but failed to capitalize on their early control. But the second half was a completely different story, as the home side swept the Swans aside, helped by some lacklustre defending.
Returning defenders Ben Cabango and Harry Darling, along with Lawrence Vigouroux, Joe Allen, and Liam Cullen, who came into the side after the FA Cup defeat at Southampton, were unable to halt a bitterly disappointing and damaging defeat for the visitors.
Swans Head Coach Luke Williams was scathing of his players in his post-match press conference, whilst adding it had been a “dreadful day“.
Swansea City return to Championship action on Tuesday evening, when Sheffield United are the visitors to the Swansea.com stadium.
Team Lineups
Swansea City: Lawrence Vigouroux, Josh Key (Kyle Naughton 76), Ben Cabango, Harry Darling, Josh Tymon; Matt Grimes (captain), Gonçalo Franco, Joe Allen (Žan Vipotnik 55); Ronald (Sam Parker 84), Jisung Eom (Florian Bianchini 55), Liam Cullen.
Unused Substitutes: Jon McLaughlin, Jay Fulton, Cyrus Christie, Myles Peart-Harris, Dan Watts.
Cardiff City: Jak Alnwick, Dimitrios Goutas, Jesper Daland, Joe Ralls (captain), Callum O’Dowda (Joel Bagan 24), Calum Chambers (Manolis Siopis 76), Alex Robertson (Rubin Colwill 76), Ollie Tanner (Yakou Meite 83), Andy Rinomhota, Cian Ashford, Callum Robinson (Yousef Salech 84).
Unused Substitutes: Ethan Horvath, Will Fish, Chris Willock, Perry Ng.
Referee: James Bell
Attendance: 26,536 including around 2,000 Swansea fans.
Match Highlights
Watch highlights of the Swans dismal defeat at the Cardiff City stadium.
Feature Image Credit: Swansea City Football Club