Zan Vipotnik produced two outstanding finishes to give Swansea City a 2-1 victory over a beleaguered Norwich City side and end the hosts' worrying run without a home Championship win. The Slovenian striker, who had failed to score in his previous six outings for club and country, struck in each half at the Swansea.com Stadium, either side of Jovon Makama's close-range equaliser, to ease the pressure on head coach Alan Sheehan and extend Norwich's alarming slump.
Swansea's first win in four matches in all competitions, and their first league success on home soil in five attempts, lifts them to 13th in the table and to within three points of the play-off places ahead of a glamorous Carabao Cup tie against Manchester City. For Norwich, who started the day in the bottom three and have now gone seven Championship games without a win, losing the last five, the spotlight grows ever harsher on head coach Liam Manning after another setback that prompted angry chants from the travelling support.
Swansea's fast start rewards Sheehan's bold selection
Sheehan had to reshuffle his side after the midweek defeat to Queens Park Rangers, with midfielder Malick Yalcouye suspended following his red card in that game. The Swansea boss made four changes to his starting line-up, restoring Liam Cullen, Ronald and Vipotnik to the attack and looking for a more aggressive, front-foot display. Norwich, by contrast, arrived under heavy pressure yet unchanged, as Manning kept faith with the same eleven that had lost at Derby County, despite losing forward Ante Crnac to a season-ending anterior cruciate ligament injury and only having Mathias Kvistgaarden fit enough for the bench.