Following Swansea City’s victory over Cardiff City in the South Wales derby on Saturday, Luke Williams was elated.
The South Wales derby victory over Cardiff City on Saturday, according to Luke Williams, was the most “complete performance so far” in his Swansea City career.
Liam Cullen and Jamal Lowe’s goals gave Swansea a well-earned victory over their bitter rivals, giving them derby bragging rights once more after losing to the Bluebirds in September.
Williams now has his own derby victory to savour, having already experienced the exhilaration of a South Wales derby victory while serving as Russell Martin’s assistant. The Swans and their supporters were clearly moved when Lowe’s stoppage-time strike found the net.
The victorious Williams declared, “We won in a really positive way,” following the match. It’s not like having to make a choice or something like. I believe we were victorious in every way. I am unable to disagree with the approach we took today.
“I believe that what we’re all aiming for is the harmony of aggression and intensity with serenity and understanding. We’ve probably seen one or the other in a performance recently. Or there have been times when we excelled at both. I thought this was the most polished performance I’ve seen thus far.
“For an hour, we appeared to be in control. We can’t really expect to be pressure-free, but I believe we dominated the game for the most part, and we generated all of the really important opportunities.”
Cullen’s missed penalty kick in the second half is now likely to be forgotten, and Williams is happy with the striker’s overall performance, which was highlighted by a fantastic finish for Swansea’s first goal.
When asked about Cullen’s performance, Williams responded, “He ran relentlessly and contested every ball.” It’s difficult to accomplish and takes a lot of work to guide the ball and make it appear comfortable [for his goal].
It is a goal fit for a striker. He has the guts to accept the punishment. Then he’s back where he belongs. Heading the ball, Ronnie makes an in-swinging cross. Although it’s unfortunate that he didn’t score, I believe that the most crucial aspect for strikers is having the courage to be in the perfect place to miss. He has the courage to face those repercussions.”
Williams was also happy with the Wales international’s response after missing the penalty kick, as well as the response from the supporters, who a few moments later sang the striker’s name.
He continued, “It says everything about him.” “The fact that people sing his name as we have to face a set piece as we move up the other end. That indicates that they are also aware of what they are looking at.
It’s not as though you’ve missed a guy and you think he’s not serious. He’s not paying attention. He isn’t present. Nobody gave that much thought. Nobody gave that any thought. That was the extra bit he needed to pull himself back into the game, which is why I’m so glad they did it. He performed that masterfully.”
Midway through the second half, Kyle Naughton hobbled off with what appeared to be a hamstring injury. This was perhaps the only setback to the performance.
“I don’t know how serious it is yet, but this guy is amazing, and it doesn’t look good. I’m so very angry. I’m hoping it’s not too serious. However, we’ll see.”
Ben Cabango, who pulled up in training prior to this match, is yet another injury issue. This puts his availability to play for Wales during the upcoming international break in considerable doubt.