Swansea vs. Chelsea: Score, Reaction from 2016 Premier League Match

Chelsea fell to their first Premier League defeat under the rule of interim manager Guus Hiddink on Saturday after Gylfi Sigurdsson's first-half strike led Liberty Stadium hosts Swansea City to a 1-0 victory.

Sigurdsson gave the Swans a crucial half-time lead after his 25th-minute volley inside the area found its way past Chelsea goalkeeper Asmir Begovic, and the Blues failed to muster a response.

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Begovic started in place of dropped No. 1 Thibaut Courtois, and Alexandre Pato made his first start for the Blues since joining on loan in January. Meanwhile, Matt Miazga and Ruben Loftus-Cheek also got rare starts.

Chelsea writer Dan Levene noted the absence of club legend John Terry and saw the result as further reason as to why the stalwart should be handed a new contract:

Swansea may have expected to settle for a lesser share of possession, home advantage or not, and that was precisely the course the game took as Chelsea, fresh off a 4-0 throttling of Aston Villa, took control.

But an under-strength Blues lineup never looked quite as cutting as it might have had the likes of Willian or Gary Cahill been present in attack and defence, respectively.

Miazga kept a clean sheet against Villa last time out, but Swansea proved to be far more testing opposition, and the United States international's hand in Sigurdsson's opener was a telling indicator of his struggles.

There were calls for penalty after Jefferson Montero appeared to hit his cross off the hand of Cesar Azpilicueta, but a second attempt found Miazga, and his poor header trickled to Sigurdsson. The Iceland midfielder volleyed home in the area, and Yahoo's Kristan Heneage highlighted the American's error:

Swansea made it to the half-time whistle with their lead intact, but the second half created an even nervier atmosphere in south Wales, and Chelsea continued to press their assault in the possession stakes.

Yet despite operating largely on the counter, it was Swansea boss Francesco Guidolin who saw his team open up the better chances in front of goal, some of which the Daily Mail's Riath Al-Samarrai felt should have been taken:

Miazga's disappointing afternoon came to an abrupt end at half-time, with Brazilian attacker Kenedy his replacement, while Bertrand Traore and Radamel Falcao also came on in place of Pato and Loftus-Cheek, respectively.

But the deficit remained, and Swans striker Alberto Paloschi was unlucky not to add to his side's lead, as blogger Liam Canning described just how poor the travelling team had performed:

Per FlashScore.com, Chelsea managed to carve out just two shots on target despite accounting for almost two-thirds of the possession in what was a limp and disappointing display. 

Swansea City have now lost just once in their last six outings, while Chelsea's 4-0 hammering of Villa last weekend is their only victory in the same span of time, losing three and drawing two of their last six.

Hiddink's first Premier League defeat as interim Chelsea manager since taking over in December comes five months and 14 matches after he began his second stint at Stamford Bridge, leaving the Blues' slim hopes of European football in serious doubt. 

Post-Match Reaction

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As valuable as the Chelsea win was, three points held greater meaning for Swansea on Saturday as their Premier League survival was effectively confirmed after hitting the magic 40-point mark.

Per BBC Wales Sport, Guidolin told the media his club had attained "virtual safety," with the Swansea now a substantial 13 points clear of the bottom three:

The Italian's reputation at the Liberty Stadium will have undoubtedly undergone an improvement with Saturday's win in tow, but Guidolin's future with Swansea is still far from assured.

Goal's Liam Twomey said Guidolin avoided any talk of his stay in south Wales:

Hiddink's first league defeat in his second Chelsea spell was a glum one, and the Dutchman told Sky Sports his team "were not sharp enough in the final third" to earn a result at Swansea:

Even with the likes of Pato, Falcao and Traore present in the place of suspended Diego Costa, the Blues couldn't make an impact in front of goal.

The west Londoners will hope to have their Spain striker back as soon as possible, but their over-reliance on Costa's talents may be considered a worrying development in attack.