Swansea vs. Liverpool: Winners and Losers from Premier League
Andre Ayew scored twice to help Swansea City secure their Premier League status for another season with a 3-1 home win over a lacklustre Liverpool on Sunday.
Reds manager Jurgen Klopp made eight alterations from the side that featured in the 1-0 loss in the UEFA Europa League semi-final first leg against Villarreal on Thursday.
However, despite so many fresh faces in a youthful XI, the visitors never got going in the first half.
After Ayew broke the deadlock by heading home a corner in the 20th minute, the Swans sailed into a 2-0 lead thanks to Jack Cork's curling effort from outside the penalty area.
Liverpool sent on Christian Benteke and Lucas Leiva at half-time, and the former scored to cut the deficit in half.
But Ayew pounced on some hesitant defending to restore Swansea's two-goal cushion, with Liverpool then seeing full-back Brad Smith sent off in the 76th minute.
Here Bleacher Report picks out the winners and losers from the game.
Winner: Andre Ayew
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It has been quite a week for Swansea City's Ayew.
Having welcomed the arrival of baby daughter Maha on Friday, the forward was able to celebrate scoring two goals against Liverpool 48 hours later.
The Ghana international was somehow able to get a free header from a 20th-minute corner to break the deadlock, giving the hosts a lead their fast start merited.
His second—coming just three minutes after Liverpool had halved the deficit—was his 10th goal of an impressive debut season with the Swans.
According to WhoScored.com, Ayew has reached double figures for the first time in a single campaign since 2010/11, when he scored 11 for his previous club, Olympique Marseille.
Loser: Martin Skrtel
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With Mamadou Sakho suspended and Kolo Toure partly at fault for Villarreal's late winner in the Europa League on Thursday, Martin Skrtel had the opportunity to impress against Swansea City.
The Slovakian defender, who has found starts hard to come by this calendar year, but his manager, Klopp, made him captain for the game at the Liberty Stadium.
However, Skrtel failed to show enough to suggest he deserves to feature against Villarreal in the second leg at Anfield on Thursday night.
He was unable to get out quickly enough to block Cork's shot for Swansea's second goal, and he picked up a needless booking in the second half for a sliding challenge.
According to Squawka on Twitter, "Liverpool's win percentage this season with Martin Skrtel is just 35 per cent, compared to 53.3 per cent without him."
It must have stung a little bit when Klopp demoted Skrtel from the captaincy at half-time, handing the armband to substitute Lucas Leiva instead.
Winner: Danny Ward
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It may seem odd to brand a goalkeeper who conceded three goals a winner, yet Danny Ward kept Liverpool afloat during a first half in which they were in serious danger of sinking without a trace.
Deputising for the rested Simon Mignolet, Ward—who only made his Premier League debut at Bournemouth on April 17—was a busy man before the break.
He stuck out his right foot to keep out a low drive from Jack Cork while also producing a diving stop low to his right to turn away an effort from Jefferson Montero.
The Wales international may well be questioned over his decision not to come for the corner that led to Swansea's first goal, but he could do little about the other two Liverpool conceded.
While he will be back on the bench on Thursday against Villarreal, the 22-year-old could yet get another first-team opportunity before the conclusion of the season.
Loser: Pedro Chirivella
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According to Dafydd Pritchard of BBC Sport, Liverpool named their youngest side of the Premier League era, with an average age of 23.
Pedro Chirivella's selection certainly lowered that number. The 18-year-old was handed his first league start by Jurgen Klopp, and he began the game in central midfield alongside Kevin Stewart.
However, it proved to be a tough baptism in the top flight for the teenager.
He struggled to cope with Swansea's pressing game in the first half, leading to him completing just 72.7 per cent of his passing attempts, per WhoScored.com.
With the Reds two goals down at the break, Chirivella was hooked at half-time.
Klopp said of the talented youngster in his post-match press conference, per This Is Anfield on Twitter: "He's a wonderful player, a passing player, a big, big talent, but today he forgot to orientate himself."
Winner: Francesco Guidolin
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While there are doubts over Francesco Guidolin's long-term future at Swansea City, the Italian should be praised for his role in helping the Welsh club retain their top-flight status.
Since taking over in January 2016, Guidolin has steered the Swans safely away from the relegation zone.
They only needed a point against Liverpool to be mathematically safe, yet they claimed all three thanks to a performance of two contrasting halves.
The hosts were excellent in the first 45 minutes, harassing a lethargic Liverpool into mistakes. But with a two-goal lead to protect, they sat deep after the break.
The tactic allowed the Reds to pull a goal back through Benteke, but Ayew made sure Swansea didn't surrender their lead, making it 3-1 just three minutes later.
So will Guidolin stick around at the Liberty Stadium beyond the rest of the campaign?
Neil Fissler of the Daily Express reported the coach may be somewhere else in the Premier League next season, linking the 60-year-old with Watford.
Loser: Brad Smith
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How poor was Brad Smith's performance against Swansea? Bad enough to make Liverpool fans wish Alberto Moreno had played instead. Yeah, that bad.
Left-back Smith was dismissed in the second half after picking up a pair of bookings.
His first yellow card came for holding back Wayne Routledge after he had somehow ended up on the wrong side of the Swansea winger.
The Australian was then given his marching orders for catching Swans substitute Kyle Naughton, the foul coming after Smith had misread the bounce of the ball.
