Swansea City move four points clear of relegation zone with crucial win over Sunderland

The celebration lasted for more or less an hour before the final whistle had even been blown.

Swansea were two-nil up and four points clear of Hull and third bottom of the Premier league by half-time. It would have taken some kind of footballing miracle for Sunderland under David Moyes to have turned that around.

Three thousand supporters from Swansea knew that - as did everyone in red and white. It has been an apology of a season from Sunderland and this was at least a fitting way for it to end on Wearside.

Moyes and his team were dreadful and it will take a genuinely huge rebuilding job to breathe life into the club. That was Swansea’s fear when they appointed Paul Clement.

It looked a sound appointment at five to five. The gap then to Hull was four points plus a superior goal difference, and Marco Silva must take his team to Crystal Palace on Sunday.

Those supporters from Wales, who gave such vociferous backing to their team all afternoon, knew that, it was in their jubilance.

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They had a system, intelligent play and in Gylfi Sigurdsson and Fernando Llorente, two men capable of the kind of quality which has been absent for just about the full season at the Stadium of Light.

Jermain Defoe’s goals have saved Sunderland in recent seasons. He carried Bradley Lowery onto the field before the game. It was a poignant picture in what will be Defoe’s last appearance in a red and white shirt at the Stadium of Light.

The only emotion from then was anger and frustration from home fans and as the game progressed the stadium emptied.

Swansea’s lead came in the ninth minute. Sigurdsson hit a free-kick from the right with pace and accuracy and the home goalkeeper Jordan Pickford came, and along with two defenders, missed the ball as Llorente headed his side ahead.

‘We are going down,’ chanted the home support. It was followed by ‘We want Moyes out.’ That song was played out throughout the afternoon.

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There was nothing of note to trouble Lukas Fabianski in the first half and three minutes into injury-time, Swansea had their second, and next year's Premier League came into clear focus.

It was a fine goal as well. Ki Sung-Young picked a fine slide rule pass to pick out the overlapping Kyle Naughton.

Naughton took a touch and then hammered a right foot, angled drive that flew into the top corner of Pickford’s goal.

Plenty of Sunderland fans left then.

Only a free-kick from the substitute Wahbi Khazri troubled Fabianski in the second half, when he pushed the ball away to his left. It did not matter. The fight went out of this Sunderland side a long time ago.

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When the final whistle had been blown, Swansea’s players and staff stood in front of the visiting supporters. Clement walked past them and past the penalty spot and he punched the air and banged his heart as he did.

For much of this season there has been a huge question mark as to whether Sunderland had one.

Ellis Short, the club’s owner and Martin Bain, the club’s chief executive, sat stony faced next to each other for the afternoon’s proceedings. They have to rebuild a club, and they will start from the very bottom.

Swansea have won three and drawn one of their last four games. It has been a dramatic close to the season, and now, they are very nearly safe.

Sunderland (4-3-3): Pickford; Jones, Kone, O’Shea, Manquillo; N’Dong, Denayer (Gibson 20), Larsson; Borini, Defoe, Anichebe (Khazri 36).

Swansea (4-1-2–1-2): Fabianksi; Naughton, Fernandez, Mawson, Olsson; Britton (Cork 77); Ki (Fer 67), Carroll; Sigurdsson; Ayew (Narsingh 89), Llorente.

Ref: Mr Andre Marriner