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Swansea hand Hiddink first loss

Cape Town - Gylfi Sigurdsson produced the goods for Swansea City as they fought to a 1-0 win over Chelsea at the Liberty Stadium on Saturday.

Winger Jefferson Montero was in a marauding mood in the first half, and it was some neat footwork and a cross from the Ecuadorian winger that saw Sigurdsson volley home the winning goal, resigning Blues boss Guus Hiddink to his first league defeat of the season.

Chelsea had the first real chance of the match in the seventh minute when Branislav Ivanovic got down the right flank and cut it back for Ruben Loftus-Cheek, who was arriving in the box to get on the end of it but could only hit it straight at Lukasz Fabianski.

Swansea then had two chances to take the lead in the 18th minute, with Gylfi Sigurdsson forcing Asmir Begovic into a save after a mistake from young American centre-back Matt Miazga, and a moment later Angel Rangel was slipped in down the right, but Begovic came out to meet him and his effort across goal was wide of the far post.

The Swans took the lead in the 26th minute when some quick feet from Jefferson Montero saw him dink a cross in that failed to clear with a weak header that saw the ball fall for Gylfi Sigurdsson to volley in.

Chelsea came out for the second half looking more determined than they were in the opening period, and had a chance to equalise through Alex Pato, but the Brazilian tried to be too cute as he looked to flick Pedro's cross in but sent it wide.

A minute earlier and another former Milan striker, Alberto Paloschi, clashed with Begovic after the goalkeeper came out to gather the ball at his feet after the striker had overrun a great backheel through-ball from Sigurdsson, with the Bosnian unhappy that the Italian had extended a foot in an effort to get there first.

Begovic was called into action again in the 57th minute when former Blues youngster Jack Cork struck a bouncing volley into the ground that looked set to loop into the top corner without the Bosnian's intervention.

Swansea really should have doubled their lead in the 75th minute after a great run down the right from Sigurdsson saw him beat Baba Rahman with ease and dink it into the middle for Montero, but the wideman headed over the crossbar from close range when he really should have buried it.

Colombian striker Radamel Falcao entered the fray for the final 15 minutes and almost equalised in the 85th minute when he was slipped through on goal, but his effort was too weak to get the better of Fabianski.

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