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Match Analysis: Swansea City 2-2 Newcastle United

Sports Mole takes a closer look at Newcastle's 2-2 draw away to Swansea in the Premier League.

Newcastle United fought back twice on Saturday to earn a 2-2 draw away to Swansea City in the Premier League.

Swansea took the lead on 17 minutes through Wilfried Bony, but the visitors drew themselves level before the break thanks to Papiss Cisse.

The home side restored their advantage at the start of the second period when Wayne Routledge found the net, only for Newcastle to earn a share of the spoils with another Cisse goal 15 minutes from time.

Here, Sports Mole takes a closer look at the action between the two teams at the Liberty Stadium.

Match statistics

Swansea
Shots: 11
On target: 5
Possession: 64%
Corners: 3
Fouls: 11

Newcastle
Shots: 9
On target: 4
Possession: 36%
Corners: 1
Fouls: 15

Was the result fair?

Swansea can count themselves unlucky for not coming away with the three points, but a lack of finishing allowed Newcastle the chance to snatch a draw. Credit to the Magpies for persisting and grinding out a solid result, though they could easily have ended up on wrong end of a hammering.

Swansea's performance

Garry Monk's side really should have won the match thanks to a positive display that saw them show plenty of invention and ambition in attack. However, some wayward finishing in the final third and some shakiness at the back cost them in the end. The Swans are likely to focus on the fact that they did not close out the game, but they can also take lots of encouragement from their performance.

Gylfi Sigurdsson, Wayne Routledge, Wilfried Bony and Nathan Dyer caused Newcastle constant problems with their movement, while Jonjo Shelvey provided his team with some bite in midfield. A sturdier defence and they would have probably sealed the points in comfortable fashion.

Newcastle's performance

This was another worrying showing from Newcastle, though they are sure to be happy with how the fought doggedly to earn a share of the spoils. They looked woeful during the first half, with Swansea overwhelming them in pretty much every area of the pitch. There was a slight improvement in the second, but Alan Pardew will be well aware how far off the pace his players still are.

One area of genuine concern for the Magpies is how there is little creativity coming from midfield. Despite bagging himself a couple of goals, Papiss Cisse had hardly anything to work with all afternoon. A point away to Swansea can be classed as a good result, especially considering how they came from behind twice, but Newcastle remain some way off turning things around.

Sports Mole's man of the match

Gylfi Sigurdsson: Swansea's talisman in midfield pulled the strings yet again with some fine passing and movement. The Icelandic international set up both of his side's goals with a couple of incisive through-balls that split the Newcastle defence apart. Sigurdsson is exactly the sort of player that the Magpies need in terms of creating from central areas.

Biggest gaffe

Moussa Sissoko had a moment to forget in the build-up to Swansea's second goal when he was dispossessed far too easily by Sigurdsson on the edge of his own box. The Newcastle midfielder, who was largely anonymous throughout the game, needed to show more strength than he did.

Referee performance

Considering that he was in the spotlight for sending off Wayne Rooney the previous weekend, this was a far more low-key afternoon for Lee Mason. The man in the middle was reluctant to get his cards out and generally allowed the game to flow.

What next?

Swansea: The Swans continue their Premier League campaign on October 19 when they travel to Stoke City.

Newcastle: The Magpies are back in action on October 18 with the visit of Leicester City in the Premier League.

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Newcastle United's Papiss Cisse celebrates after scoring against Chelsea during the English Premier League football match at Stamford Bridge in London on May 2, 2012
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