Rob Davies
Russell Martin was quick to point to the difference in quality between the two squads yesterday as Burnley went home with three points from the Swansea.com Stadium.
Two Ian Maatsen goals were the difference despite Oli Cooper pulling the game back to 2-1 in the first half although with the absences of Jamie Paterson and Michael Obafemi the substitutes bench looked as weak as it ever has.
There was very little opportunity for the manager to make the required changes which may have earned something from the match with another attacking player Armstrong Oko-Flex omitted as he looks set to return to West Ham.
Contrast that to Vincent Kompany’s Burnley who brought on Ashley Barnes, Johan Gudmundsson and Manuel Benson to freshen the team up in the second half as Martin looked to Cameron Congreve and Luke Cundle.
Martin told the media post match: “I thought there was very little between the two teams.
“That’s what you get with youth and I guess that’s the difference with financial power with the players they have.
“We were too timid in the first 15 minutes, and paid them a bit too much respect.
“But after that, for the next 30 minutes, we were outstanding. We caused them all sorts of problems and out of possession we were aggressive.
“We probably should have made more of the good moments that we had, but I’m really proud of that performance.”
Swansea face Bristol City away in the FA Cup on Sunday at 12:30.
