Norwich will be hoping this loss at Swansea doesn’t come back to haunt them. With West Brom and Cardiff playing out a draw, and Crystal Palace beating Chelsea, the Canaries will be just four points clear of the relegation zone if Sunderland beat West Ham on Monday. Swansea, however, have made themselves comfortable, sitting seven points above the drop after their emphatic win at the Liberty Stadium.
It took some time for Swansea to break down the Norwich City defense, but by halftime, they were up 2-0.
Swansea had the lion’s share of possession and the majority of the shots, and right from the start, it only seemed a matter of time before the hosts took the lead. The first effort of the game saw Michu drag his eighth minute shot well wide, but his later effort, off a cross from Jonjo Shelvey, went barely wide of John Ruddy’s post. Moments later, the Canaries keeper performed a brilliant save to deny Wayne Routledge, while Wes Hoolahan came barreling in to make sure the rebound was cleared.
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The Norwich defense didn’t manage to hold out much longer, however. In the 30th minute, they failed to clear another cross from Shelvey and, with a little help from Michu, Jonathan de Guzman took advantage. The attacker put in a low shot from the edge of the area to put Swansea on top.
Eight minutes later, it was another for Swansea – and de Guzman. Again, Norwich were punished for their mistakes, losing possession in midfield. A tricky backheel from Wilfried Bony set de Guzman free, his chipped shot sailing over Ruddy and into the back of the net.
Chris Hughton made two changes at the break, bringing on Bradley Johnson for Jonny Howson and replacing Hoolahan with Jonás Gutiérrez. The change had immediate effect, with Ashley Williams forced to clear an effort from Robert Snodgrass off the line just after play resumed. Immediately after, Michel Vorm was called into action to deny a goal from Ricky van Wolfswinkel.
It looked as though Norwich would be able to make an impact on the game. The action swung from end to end, and Vorm did well again to push away a close-range shot from Johann Elmander.
But the Canaries’ hopes were dashed in the 75th minute, when Wayne Routledge put in Swansea’s third. Shelvey played the ball out wide to Routledge, who needed just one touch to blast past Ruddy.
Swansea City: Vorm, Rangel, Chico, Williams, Davies, Britton, Shelvey, de Guzman (Dyer 77), Michu (Hernandez 73), Routledge, Bony (Alvaro 88)
Goals: de Guzman 30′, 38′; Routledge 75′
Norwich City: Ruddy, Martin, Bennett, Bassong, Olsson, Snodgrass, Howson (Johnson 46), Tettey, Hoolahan (Gutierrez 46), Elmander, van Wolfswinkel (Hooper 74)
