Swansea City manager Carlos Carvalhal has heaped praise on Jordan Ayew following the club’s 3-1 thrashing of Arsenal in the Premier League on Tuesday at the Liberty Stadium.
A Nacho Monreal’s strike by the 33rd minute gave Wenger’s side a deserving lead but Sam Clucas’ brace, which was sandwiched by Ayew’s goal, turned the game on its head for Swansea.
Ayew benefited from a howler by Petr Cech in the second half before he forced his way into Arsenal box to set up Clucas for the third goal of the night.
“I think we prepare very well for the game, but even if you prepare well, you will get nothing if the players do not believe in what you are doing,” Carvalhal told the club’s website.
“So all the credit must go to all my players. All of the players I think are improving. When the dynamic of the team is good, that happens.
“One day, it can be Sam Clucas (who impresses), one day Jordan Ayew, one day Leroy Fer, who is jumping to another level,” he said.
He added: “We knew what would happen in this game – we knew Arsenal would have the ball more because they do that against almost every side.
“But we blocked their dynamic. They like to play between the lines and we blocked them, which meant they had a huge problem creating goalscoring situations.
“A fundamental thing in the game was that our defensive transitions were very strong. Arsenal can hurt you in these situations, but Jordan Ayew was absolutely amazing in the way he received the ball and waited for the second line of players.
“This was crucial for us. We knew if we could do it, we would create chances and we had three or four in the first half.”
Ayew has scored now scored five goals in 25 appearances as the Swans gradually move away from the relegation zone.
They will travel to King Power Stadium next weekend to lock horns with Leicester City.