Swansea City maintained their unbeaten start to the campaign by beating West Bromwich Albion 3-0 at the Liberty Stadium this afternoon.
Nathan Dyer struck in either half for the impressive-looking Swans, while Wayne Routledge scored a sweetly-struck half-volley in between.
The victory leaves Swansea at the top of the early Premier League standings, but it is now three games without a win for Alan Irvine's West Brom in the league this season.
You can see how the game unfolded below.
Hello and welcome to Sports Mole's live coverage of the Premier League meeting between Swansea City and West Bromwich Albion at the Liberty Stadium.
The two sides come into this game unbeaten in all competitions, although it's the Swans who will be the happier of the two with a 100% record to date in league and cup. West Brom have opened their season with two league draws, meanwhile, and needed penalties to see off League Two Oxford United in midweek in their League Cup meeting.
There is plenty to get through between now and kickoff at 15:00, so let's get straight into it with a look at some team news....
TEAM NEWS!
SWANSEA CITY XI: Fabianski, Rangel, Amat, Williams, Taylor, Ki, Shelvey, Dyer, Sigurdsson, Routledge, Bony
WEST BROM XI: Foster, Wisdom, Dawson, Olsson, Davidson, Gardner, Mulumbu, Berahino, Dorrans, Brunt, Ideye
So an unchanged starting lineup named by Garry Monk for the third-successive game. Wilfried Bony starts up front with Gylfi Sigurdsson playing behind him, while Ki Sung-yeung is fielded in the middle a couple of days after penning a new four-year contract at the club.
West Brom manager Alan Irvine has handed a first league start to summer signing Brown Ideye this afternoon, while at the back Craig Dawson retains his place with Joleon Lescott still short of fitness. Sebastien Pocognoli has failed to recover from the knock picked up last week at Southampton, meanwhile, and misses out on the trip to South Wales.
BENCH WATCH:
Swansea City: Tremmel, Tiendalli, Fernandez, Richards, Carroll, Montero, Gomis
West Brom: Myhill, Gamboa, Sessegnon, McAuley, Morrison, Yacob, Baird
He may have opened up his Swansea scoring account in midweek, but Bafetimbi Gomis has to make due with a spot among the substitutes this afternoon. New signings Federico Fernandez and Tom Carroll are also on the home bench, but we may see them some point this afternoon.
Victor Anichebe was withdrawn during last weekend's goalless draw at St Mary's for West Brom, and his injury is clearly worse than first thought as the striker fails to make the squad completely. World Cup star Cristian Gamboa does however make the 18, along with Stephane Sessegnon who could make an impact late on.
Intriguing...
Well we've seen how the teams line up for today's game, but how have they shaped up so far this season? Well for Swansea it really could not have gone any better so far. Three games, three wins, no complaints. It was a tough end to the last campaign for the Swans, with Michael Laudrup leaving the club in February and the club seemingly dropping closer and closer to the relegation zone.
In truth the Welsh outfit rarely looked in too much danger, and once Garry Monk steadied the ship over the summer, supporters were once more in a positive mindset heading into this season. An opening-day victory over Manchester United set a high benchmark, and it could very well have been a case of Swansea peaking early on. But credit to Monk who steered his side to a slender victory over Burnley and a solid cup win over Rotherham in midweek in the League Cup.
It was also a campaign to forget for West Brom last time out, with relegation looking a real possibility, particularly in the closing months. The appointment of the relatively untested Alan Irvine was a surprise, but he has steadily gone about his transfer business, and the Baggies have looked solid if not unspectacular in their opening two league games.
A 2-2 draw against Sunderland on the opening day was followed with last weekend's goalless draw against Southampton, which saw limited chances for both sides. There was positive signs for Irvine to take away from St Mary's, particularly some of the link-up play out wide throughout the game. They will pose a tough threat today, and in Ideye the visitors hope to have a real goalscorer at this level.
BREAKING NEWS!
Well just as I was saying how Irvine has done well to strengthen his West Brom side this summer, the capture of Argentinian winger Sebastian Blanco is announced - the Baggies 11th signing of the window. He doesn't make today's squad, but he will no doubt have a part to play as the season progresses.
PREDICTION! Well these two sides met twice last season in the Premier League of course, with the away side coming out on top on both occasions. In fact, the last 12 meetings between the two has seen just the one draw. Despite the good omens for the visitors, I'm going to back Swansea to maintain their 100% start to the campaign with a 3-1 victory.
With just 20 minutes to go until kickoff, check out what the Sports Mole team make of today's match at the Liberty Stadium:
KEY MEN: Without Bony's goals last season, who knows where Swansea City would have ended up? It would be harsh to call the Swans a one-man team, with some real quality throughout the team, but the Ivorian's goals could very well have been the difference between Championship and Premier League football this season.
West Brom on the other hand have turned to Brown Ideye to fire the goals, and although he failed to find the breakthrough against Oxford on Tuesday night, he looked a threat when he came on against Southampton last weekend. If the service into the box is good, he will score.
UPDATE: Manchester United remain winless under Louis van Gaal after playing out a goalless draw against Burnley in the day's early kickoff. Click here to read a full match report from Turf Moor.
Following this weekend's action, there is a two-week break from the Premier League as international football returns. It's always vital to go into the hiatus in a positive mood, and West Brom are in a strange position right now. Two points from six games doesn't sound great on the surface, but they have shown positive signs in both draws this season. That said, a defeat today and the pressure on Irvine will crank up just that little extra.
As already mentioned, it's been a perfect start for Monk so far in 2013-14, and victory today will only strengthen the owner's trust. It was a little surprising to see the 35-year-old appointed as manager on a full-time basis, although that decision looks inspired right now.
Just three minutes until kickoff now at the Liberty Stadium
KICKOFF! Hymns and Arias rings around the ground as West Brom, in their all-red strip, gets us underway.
GOAL! Swansea City 1-0 West Bromwich Albion (Dyer)
What a start for Swansea! Less than two minutes on the clock and Nathan Dyer has edged his side into the lead. Sigurdsson back-heeled the ball through to the winger, and after Olsson slipped Dyer rounded Ben Foster before tapping home.
What a start for Swansea! Less than two minutes on the clock and Nathan Dyer has edged his side into the lead. Sigurdsson back-heeled the ball through to the winger, and after Olsson slipped Dyer rounded Ben Foster before tapping home.
SHOT! Swansea are looking good so far. Building on that early goal, Wilfried Bony used his strength to hold off Mulumbu before firing an effort narrowly over goal.
Not a lot to write home about in terms of West Brom chances; in fact the hosts are in command of possession right now. Jonjo Shelvey, never one to shriek at a shot from long-range, gets strike in at goal from more than 40-yards out, but Foster makes light work of collecting the effort.
Well rather bizarrely Olsson has gone running down the tunnel to presumably change his boots. His slip cost West Brom early on when Dyer ran past him before tapping home.
CHANCE! It could very well have been 2-0 to Swansea after Shelvey picked out Bony with his cross into the box. The Ivorian managed to get ahead of his opponent but he couldn't keep the attempt on goal. Incidentally, Olsson is now back on the field after changing his boots.
The Baggies win a free kick out wide which is swung into the middle and well cleared. Off the ball Swans captain Ashley Williams has dragged Olsson down to the ground, but it was not spotted by the referee or his officials. Could have been costly!
After soaking up some danger, Shelvey leads a Swansea counter-attack and feeds the ball into the path of Bony. The striker's touch lets him down slightly, however, and the danger is well cleared by West Brom. The game is far more balanced now.
Both sides are fielding two players deep in midfield, the difference right now is that Ki and Shelvey in particular are making things happen, rather than just keeping the ball ticking over.
GOAL! Swansea 2-0 West Bromwich Albion (Routledge)
WHAT A GOAL! Take a bow Wayne Routledge. The ball awkwardly falls to the winger, but instead of controlling it on the edge of the box, he smashes it home with an unbelievable technique. That all came about after Dawson failed to clear the initial danger into the box with his header - it could have been avoided.
Moments before that goal Chris Brunt tried his luck from range, only for his deflected effort to end up safely in the hands of Fabianski.
YELLOW CARD! Graham Dorrans is the first man to go into the referees' book for his poor challenge on Sigurdsson.
OFF THE BAR! It was almost game over before the interval, with Olsson's flicked header coming back off his own crossbar. It's not been the Sweeden international's day so far, and that would have summed it all up. Moments later the ball was played into the path of Dyer who had his shot from close-range by Foster, yet the officials had already ruled it off - wrongly - for offside.
All very comfortable for Swansea; half time is needed for the visitors. Sigurdsson is the latest to try his luck, but his effort troubles to fail Foster.
It's difficult to see how Gomis fits into this Swansea City side. Monk said this week that he will look to field the summer signing alongside Bony at some stage, but Bony is linking up so well with Sigurdsson that any changes would surely disrupt the flow and balance.
Swansea really turning it on now, and a third goal wouldn't exactly flatter them. Full-back Neil Taylor is the man furthest forward for the home side, and he is inches away from getting on the end of a through-ball, which skips away from him. Some brilliant following football, but it's all coming from one side.
SHOT! As I say that, Ideye managed to turn two Swansea players before getting a strike away at goal which is easily handled by Fabianski. Not the best shot, but at last West Brom have shown a sign that they are not out of this game.
Ideye has clearly got a feel for the ball now, and he's just tried his luck from inside the opposition half. His attempt sailed well wide of the target.
SHOT! Routledge almost added his second in an equally-spectacular fashion after getting on the end of Williams's flick-on inside the box. His shot ended narrowly wide of the far post, however, to the relief of Foster. Moments later Dyer once more looked to pick out Bony inside the area, but Dawson did very well to head away.
HALF TIME: Swansea City 2-0 West Bromwich Albion
The referee signals the end of the half, and it seems certain that Swansea are going to maintain their 100% start to the season. Dyer put the hosts into the lead with under two minutes played, before Routledge fired home a fantastic half-volley from the edge of the box on the 24-minute mark.
It could have been even worse for Alan Irvine's charges, with Olsson heading the ball against his own bar shortly after Routledge made it two. West Brom have failed to create any openings, being restricted to just one real effort on goal through Ideye's shot from the edge of the box which was easily saved.
Dyer got the Swans up and running in South Wales this afternoon...
BENCH WATCH:
Swansea City: Tremmel, Tiendalli, Fernandez, Richards, Carroll, Montero, Gomis
West Brom: Myhill, Gamboa, Sessegnon, McAuley, Morrison, Yacob, Baird
All eyes are on the West Brom bench at the interval, and surely Irvine will make at least one change at the break. Something simply has to change, otherwise it will be a long afternoon at the Liberty Stadium for the hosts. Swansea, meanwhile, can turn to Gomis if things get a little stale in the second period, while Carroll will also want to make his first appearance.
WEST BROM SUBSTITUTION! Sessegnon is brought on in place of Dorrans. I said a sub simply had to be made at the break, and Irvine clearly agrees.
SECOND HALF! We're back underway at the Liberty Stadium. Baggies supporters will be hoping that Sessegnon can help link the gap between midfield and attack, because Ideye looked completely isolated for large parts of the opening 45 minutes.
CHANCE! The visitors already look better in the opening stages of the second half, showing far more urgency and getting bodies forward. That said, Swansea create the first chance with Dyer spinning in behind before playing a nicely weighted ball across the face of goal which Bony is inches away from converting.
Ki is currently receiving treatment after limping off the pitch. He's a key player for the Swans with his ability to pick an eye of the needle pass, but his afternoon may well be over.
Swansea are finding gaps at the back with West Brom looking to get men forward, and it almost paid dividends for the hosts. Routledge burst forward only to be denied by a well-timed tackle, but the winger won the ball back and lofted it towards the far post. Foster had to be on guard, and he managed to shove it out of the path of Bony who was waiting to head home.
Cliche alert: The next goal in this game is going to be massive. The contest is so open right now, and West Brom are asking far more questions in the opening 10 minutes of the second half than they did in the whole of the first. Berahino won a corner for his side after charging down the wing, and Olsson came close to pulling one back with his header which ended wide of the goal.
A lot of the game being played in midfield now, which is more than can be said of the first half. If West Brom can find a way through it will set up a brilliant final 30 minutes or so.
Sigurdsson picks out Ki on the edge of the opposition box shortly after the hour-mark, and the South Korean gets a shot away, but it is not enough to challenge Foster down low.
YELLOW CARD! Craig Gardner is the second Baggies player to enter the book for his challenge on Sigurdsson. He is known for his tough-tackling, so he will have to be careful for the remainder.
PENALTY SHOUT! After Foster picked up a back-pass, Swansea were awarded a free kick inside the area which Bony struck towards goal, only for his effort to be blocked on the line by Andre Wisdom. It looked for all the world that the defender had used his hand to block it, but the referee saw the incident differently. Bony tried his luck from the rebound, only for Foster to match the shot.
SWANSEA SUBSTITUTE! Goalscorer Routledge is replaced by tricky-winger Jefferson Montero. Like-for-like, meaning a pair of fresh legs for the hosts.
CHANCE! The game should really have been put to bed by Bony. The striker was picked out by Montero inside the area, but after charging from his own half he was clearly out of steam and failed to convert the effort, firing over the bar.
GOAL! Swansea City 3-0 West Bromwich Albion (Dyer)
And that is surely that. Dyer adds his second of the afternoon and Swansea's third after finishing low and hard past Foster. Dyer showed great pace to burst clear after being picked out by Sigurdsson, and he kept his cool to get the better of the England international.
UPDATE: Manchester City are currently trailing 1-0 at home to Stoke City, meaning that Swansea are heading to the top of the Premier League table.
DOUBLE WEST BROM SUBSTITUTION! Gamboa and James Morrison enter the field in place of Jason Davidson and Chris Brunt. Too little, too late.
SWANSEA SUBSTITUTION! Bony's afternoon comes to an end with Gomis coming on in his place. Not a bad replacement to make when you're three goals to the good!
OFF THE BAR! That's the closest West Brom have come to finding the net, with Sessegnon striking the crossbar. In truth, and maybe I'm being harsh here, he really should have tested Fabianski at least after the chance from around 10 yards out opened up for him.
Welcome back, Gylfi...
SHOT! Berahino is on a one-man mission to pull back a consolation goal right now, seeing his effort from a right angle deflecting narrowly wide of the target. The resulting corner comes to nothing, however.
SHOT! Berahino is on a one-man mission to pull back a consolation goal right now, seeing his effort from a right angle deflecting narrowly wide of the target. The resulting corner comes to nothing, however.
SHOT! I tell you what, looking at the figures at the end of this match will give the wrong impression. West Brom are dominating the possession and shot stats right now, with Morrison the latest player to force a save out of Fabianski. Makes you wonder why the Baggies couldn't have done this as little as 20 minutes or so ago!
We've already seen a free kick awarded inside the penalty area for a foul throw this afternoon, and now Gamboa has been penalised following a foul throw. A brilliant microcosm of how the how the game has panned out for the Baggies.
SWANSEA SUBSTITUTE! Shortly before that bizarre foul throw, Carroll was introduced in place of Shelvey.
Routledge celebrates his spectacular first-half goal
It's been a bland end to the game, with the contest essentially over since that third goal. Montero attempted a cut-back for Gomis, but the ball was taken from his feet. Other than that, it's been very quiet.
FULL TIME: SWANSEA CITY 3-0 WEST BROMWICH ALBION
A hugely impressive performance from Swansea City against a West Brom side that looked flat from the off. Dyer bagged a goal in either half, with Routledge registering the game's best goal in between.
In truth the Baggies looked poor throughout, and it was only when the third goal hit the net that they began to look lively themselves. A lot for Alan Irvine to think about over the two-week break, while Swansea supporters can bask at the Premier League table knowing that they currently top the lot.
Well that's all from me for this afternoon, but stick around on Sports Mole with a full match report, player ratings and in-depth analysis still to come from the Liberty Stadium.
