Swansea reclaimed a place in the automatic promotion zone after delivering a decisive 3-1 win over a struggling Burnley side, further compounding the difficulties faced by new manager Nicky Hayen. The defeat left the Clarets languishing at the foot of the Championship table, while Vitor Matos’ side moved level on points with West Ham at the summit of the league, erasing the memory of their earlier 3-1 loss to Southampton. For Burnley, the loss marked their fourth defeat in seven league outings and they remain without a victory this season. Both goals they surrendered in the first half were largely preventable, and a sharper finishing touch could have at least kept the scores level.
Hayen, however, was able to name former Leicester and England forward Jamie Vardy in his match‑day squad for the first time after the 39‑year‑old’s transfer from Serie A club Cremonese. Vardy made his debut as a 64th‑minute substitute, only to see a potential goal ruled out for off‑side nine minutes later when the ball found its way into the Swansea net. The opening exchanges saw Burnley begin brightly.
The first clear chance fell to striker Zeki Amdouni in the eighth minute. After holding off Stephen Welsh in a contest for a ball inside the Swansea penalty area, Amdouni struck from a favourable angle, but his effort clipped the side netting. Swansea’s breakthrough arrived in the 14th minute when Adam Idah netted his third goal of the campaign. Chasing a long ball through the centre, Idah shielded himself from Igor Julio, surged forward and forced Burnley keeper Max Weiss to come off his line.
Weiss hesitated, lost possession under pressure from Idah, and watched the striker calmly slot the ball into an empty net. The home side doubled their lead in the 33rd minute after a sustained period of pressure from Burnley. Following a series of corners, Ugo Raghouber misplaced a clearance, allowing Elijah Just to collect the ball in the centre circle.
He quickly released Moussa Yeo on a solo run from midfield. Yeo reached the edge of the box and curled a low drive into the bottom‑left corner, securing his first goal in a Swansea shirt. Despite trailing by two, Burnley continued to create opportunities. Aaron Ramsey forced Lawrence Vigouroux into a spectacular one‑handed save, the effort ricocheting onto the crossbar.
The Clarets finally pulled a goal back in the 58th minute when Largie Ramazani timed a run to beat the off‑side trap and fired a low shot into the left corner, giving them a glimmer of hope. Swansea, however, responded swiftly.
Five minutes later Marco Stamenic threaded a precise pass to Ronald, who outran Lucas Pires before laying the ball across the box for Zan Vipotnik to tap in at the near post, restoring a two‑goal cushion. Burnley thought they had a late equaliser when an inswinging corner found the back of the Swansea net in the 87th minute, but referee James Bell intervened, spotting interference on Vigouroux and disallowing the goal.
Post‑match, Vitor Matos reflected on his side’s performance: "It was a good game for us and it was quite complete in different phases. We had really good moments when we had the ball, important moments that gave us the initiative and control in the right positions. That allowed us to push Burnley back and deep. Nothing has changed for us.
The most important thing is that we keep focusing on the process, on what we can improve, when we need to improve and then on the games. Then the results will speak for themselves. We need to keep improving our game and individually." Burnley manager Nicky Hayen acknowledged the uphill battle ahead: "It's a must‑win game for us against Derby.
There are no excuses, but there are clear reasons for our current situation. We're missing a lot of players and several new signings do not yet have the match fitness we need.
I mentioned a few weeks ago that we had to survive until the international break, where we can finally work properly on the training pitch. But surviving means taking points and winning games, which we haven't managed to do enough. That makes this a difficult period, but Saturday is a must‑win.
Despite the results, we are growing as a team. What we desperately need is one victory to reward the performance and rebuild confidence. One win will change a lot for us – everyone is craving that feeling again. You can hold me accountable for not winning games, but there are also realistic factors such as injuries, lack of fitness and integrating new signings late.
I'll keep working exactly as I always do. I treat every game as if it were my last, because that keeps you sharp and injects energy into the squad and tomorrow I will put that energy back into the group."