Swansea City 0 Arsenal 2:

Read a full match report of the Premier League game between Swansea City and Arsenal at Liberty Stadium on Saturday March 16, 2013, kick-off 15.00 (GMT).

Red letter day: Nacho Monreal celebrates scoring for Arsenal against Swansea at the Liberty Stadium 

A second away win in four days, a rare clean sheet and even a goal for Gervinho: no wonder Arsene Wenger celebrated with more outward joy that he has displayed for months. It was certainly not always convincing or pretty but, at this stage of the year, it is only results that matter and this 2-0 win was clearly as important as any this season.

Momentum will be critical as Arsenal attempt to overhaul Tottenham and Chelsea in the race for a top four finish and, with their two rivals both playing today, it was clear that Arsenal understood the potential significance of this trip to Swansea. Wenger responded to Gervinho’s injury-time finish with a rare and slightly ungainly jig of delight around the technical area, while Lukasz Fabianski even sprinted into Swansea’s own half to join the celebrations.

“We knew we couldn’t drop points - we have shown we are up for a fight,” said Wenger. “To win a big game on Wednesday [against Bayern] has transformed the mentality. The pressure was big but we have one advantage: we know what is expected and have been in this situation before.”

That favourite old chant – 1-0 to the Arsenal – had echoed around the Liberty Stadium immediately after the first goal and, for long periods, it was indeed a performance that had more in common with the resilient George Graham era than recent Wenger teams. Steve Bould, looking on alongside Wenger, is likely to have approved. Michael Laudrup had talked of wanting his Swansea team to finish their excellent season with "a bang" but, with silverware already in the trophy cabinet and Premier League survival guaranteed, it was perhaps unsurprising that they should produce one of their less convincing performances of the season.

As expected, Wenger kept goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny and captain Thomas Vermaelen on the bench following the defensive improvement in the 2-0 win over Bayern Munich. There was almost immediate uncertainty, however, when Ki Sung-Yueng split a back four that were again defending with a dangerously high line. Angel Rangel was actually marginally offside but play was allowed to continue and he skewed his shot wide. Jonathan de Guzman then also exploited space behind the Arsenal defence to find Michel, who turned back inside Per Mertesacker and shot narrowly outside Fabianski’s far post.

Arsenal were also creating chances and their control of possession steadily grew as the first-half unfolded. Santi Cazorla was excellent in the way he combined his obvious technical skill with a high workrate and forced Swansea goalkeeper Michel Vorm into action with a dipping shot from just outside the penalty area.
Arsenal’s most persistent first-half threat, however, was to come from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain on what was his first Premier League start for more than a month. After only five minutes, he sprinted into space behind Rangel and grazed the top of the crossbar with a curling shot. Oxlade-Chamberlain was then again only denied by the width of the crossbar after shooting past Vorm.
The expectation was that Arsenal would build on their momentum during the second-half but they were inexplicably flat on the game’s resumption until Wenger introduced both Gervinho and Aaron Ramsey.
Gervinho is a player who attracts significant derision for his wayward finishing but his workrate and intelligent runs do invariably create space for others. Cazorla took advantage when he then cut into the penalty area, with his cross rather fortuitously falling for Nacho Monreal whose scuffed shot crept through a crowded penalty area and past Vorm. Victory was then complete when Ramsey found space behind Swansea’s full-backs and, for once, Gervino applied a calm finish to score his Premier League goal since September.