Swansea City manager Luke Williams says his players gave Leicester City a goal in a 3-1 defeat on Tuesday night.
The hosts were comfortable winners, but Williams is still looking for his first league win of his tenure. In truth, his fixture list has proved tricky, with Southampton and the Foxes both in the running for the Premier League.
After the defeat, Swansea are in 17th place ahead of this weekend’s game against Plymouth Argyle, which will perhaps show more accurately where the Swans are in terms of their progression under Williams.
The former Notts County boss was left frustrated by the lack of concentration at the King Power Stadium, believing the second and third goals were a “gift”.
“I think we were competitive for a long time in the game,” he said. “The first goal was a fantastic action from a very good side, they play in a fantastic way, they unlocked us. Then I think between the first and second goal we kept possession.
“We created one or two chances, but of course you’re going to have to be very, very clinical to come away from here with anything. Then it’s really very frustrating that we lost concentration, and the penalty and the other two goals are gifts, really.
“They are an outstanding side, but we made it a bit too easy for them with the other two goals.”
The hosts’ second goal fell from the penalty spot at a time when Swansea were just getting well into the game. Nathan Wood was booked for slipping on Patson Dak and was adjudged to have brought down the striker.
“I didn’t really see it, but I know what happened before was a lack of concentration, a lack of focus, and you can’t do that against the best team,” Williams said when asked what he thought of the decision to award the harshest penalty.
“I want to make it clear that it is very, very challenging for players to concentrate for 96 minutes against a really top team that asks so many questions. Of course, it is also very frustrating at the same time. If you want to compete at the right end of the division, the players will have to be focused the whole game.”
Williams has seen the positives and negatives more or less in equal measure in his time in charge of the team so far, with the performance against Birmingham City (2-2 at St Andrew’s) giving him some heart. But it’s clear that with a first league win, he could really start to get his job back on track.
“Yeah, it’s frustrating,” Williams added. “I think we were minutes away from winning Birmingham, and the Southampton (game), we were blown away in the first half, but we’re actually a bit unlucky that we didn’t get a point at the end of that game because we finished so strongly and created unbelievable openings, but they were fantastic, they’re a great team.
“Now we’re playing away from home against the best team in the division, unbelievable, so it’s a very tough game but it would certainly be nice to get a win.”
Attention will now turn to the final hours of the transfer deadline; Swansea have brought in one player so far – Brazilian striker Ronaldo – and Williams says he is hoping for an active last few days in the market.
“Yeah, I think so,” he said when asked if he expects some lively days. “Busy in the sense that we will try to bring the right players, but of course it’s very difficult, so I hope they will be busy and I hope they will be fruitful.”