Swansea City ran out comfortable 2-0 winners over a lacklustre Newcastle United side in Saturday's Premier League clash at the Liberty Stadium.
Bafetimbi Gomis opened the scoring after eight minutes after he collected Jonjo Shelvey's defence-splitting pass before rounding Tim Krul and firing into the open net.
Daryl Janmaat was dismissed for two bookable offences on Jefferson Montero just before the break, and the game was all but over in the 52nd minute as the Ecuadorian's cross was nodded home by Andre Ayew.
Sports Mole analyses each aspect of the game in South Wales to determine whether the Swans were worthy winners.
Match statistics
SWANSEA
Shots: 19
On target: 6
Possession: 66%
Corners: 4
Fouls: 11
NEWCASTLE
Shots: 4
On target: 2
Possession: 34%
Corners: 4
Fouls: 8
Was the result fair?
Absolutely. It was all Swansea today, dominating in every aspect on the pitch. From possession to shots both on and off target, Garry Monk's side pretty much sealed the points by the 52nd minute, when Ayew powered his head past Krul into the back of the net. In truth, Newcastle actually gave a decent account of themselves between conceding the first goal and Janmaat's dismissal, with a goal looking increasingly likely. But with Montero, Shelvey and Ayew in such good form, it was a tall order with 11 men, never mind 10. The rest of the game was almost like a training exercise.
Swansea's performance
Monk's side didn't put a foot wrong against the Magpies, getting off to a brilliant start through Gomis, and although they wavered midway through the first half, Janmaat's moment of madness opened up a lot more space for the likes of Montero to roam into. Indeed, the Ecuadorian was given free rein to send cross after cross into the box, which led to Ayew's killer second. At the back, Lukasz Fabianski was alert to mop up a number of hazardous Newcastle crosses, though he didn't have many bona fide saves to make, while the defence was also pretty watertight during the opposition's rare moments of pressure.
Newcastle's performance
Steve McClaren will need to go back to the drawing board to help rebuild his side following their lacklustre performance today. They were second best in every aspect, with the defence just unable to handle the threat from the likes of Montero, Shelvey, Gomis and Ayew. Meanwhile the front line were largely anonymous, though that could be because the midfield had to remain back to try and thwart the Swans attacks.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Jefferson Montero: The Ecuadorian winger was a constant menace in attack, his runs leaving Newcastle with little idea as to how to deal with the threat. Janmaat tried the cynical approach, and he promptly trudged off the pitch before the first half was even over.
Biggest gaffe
Janmaat's sending off, by a country mile. It was completely needless, given that he was 70 yards from his own goal, and it just went to show that he couldn't cope with Montero's constant threat. It's not outlandish to say that he cost his side the game, because the Magpies were actually doing quite well for a spell.
Referee performance
Mike Jones barely put a foot wrong in the game, and got most of the major decisions right, such as claiming that Gomis was onside for his goal, as well as Janmaat's dismissal, although he was rather lenient on Aleksandar Mitrovic when he stamped on Neil Taylor towards the end of the game.
What next?
Swansea: The Swans travel to Sunderland on Saturday, August 22.
Newcastle: The Magpies travel to Manchester United in the early kickoff on Saturday, August 22.
Giuseppe Labellarte
