Wilfried Bony's double earned Swansea City a 2-0 win over Leicester City this evening, sending them to sixth in the Premier League table.
Gylfi Sigurdsson played a starring role in both goals before going off injured as the Welsh outfit recorded their first top-flight victory in six attempts.
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Persistence paid off for Bony, who had previously had three unsuccessful attempts in an opening half an hour which was dominated by the hosts at the Liberty Stadium.
His first opportunity came on six minutes, when he glanced a header past the post, but Kasper Schmeichel was tested by his next effort - a 20-yard shot which the Dane held well in the centre of goal.
A smart turn on the edge of the box provided the Ivorian with the space to try his luck again with a wide left-footed drive, but he soon did get on the scoresheet following a smart combination with Sigurdsson.
The Icelandic midfielder dummied for Bony, who turned the ball around the corner for his teammate before continuing a run which Sigurdsson spotted, and Bony supplied a bending finish beyond Schmeichel from 12 yards on 34 minutes.
Nobody in the division has more assists than Sigurdsson this season, but Swansea's supplier should have earlier had a goal of his own when Schmeichel's scuffed pass went straight to him. Visiting captain Wes Morgan reacted rapidly to fairly poke the ball from him before Sigurdsson could set himself to shoot.
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A much-changed Foxes attack failed to fashion a single chance in the first half, but they were nearly level three minutes into the second as Jonjo Shelvey's miscued clearance looped onto the crossbar.
The Swans increased their lead on 57 minutes when Sigurdsson delicately rolled in debutant winger Jefferson Montero, who teed up Bony to slot home from close range for his fourth goal in three games.
England midfielder Shelvey, back in the Swans team after serving a suspension, then struck the woodwork at the right end by unleashing a 30-yard drive which had Schmeichel beaten, but cannoned back off the bar.
Leicester had improved after the break but Riyad Mahrez's numerous long-range strikes were either off target or easily dealt with by Lukasz Fabianski, who also caught a dipping shot from Danny Drinkwater.
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The Pole was only severely tested in stoppage time when he dived full stretch to get a hand to Andy King's header, before reacting remarkably to foil substitute Esteban Cambiasso's on the goal-line after the Argentine had hit the post with his initial rebound from four yards.
Garry Monk's side comfortably saw out the final stages, as the Foxes dropped to 16th in the table on goal difference following a third away game without scoring and fourth top-flight match without victory.
Joe Fish
