Swansea City lost 1-0 to Luton Town at Kenilworth Road on Saturday.

There was plenty to dissect in this clash, including a chaotic fight between the two benches that resulted in Russell Martin being ejected.

Here are some of the other highlights from what turned out to be another disappointing day for Martin and his Swans.

read more: Swansea City’s defeat at Luton ended in chaos when Russell Martin was sent off

The lack of quality was noted in the last third

Saturday was a strange game in some ways. Another loss, another injury for Joe Allen and his trainer is out.

At first glance, the days don’t get much worse.

But the most interesting thing is that Swansea played very well at times, especially in the second half.

After almost all of the first 45 minutes, Swansea tried to impose an advantage on the home team, after the break possession of the ball was much more assured. The midfielders were more confident in possession of the ball, and the attacking team was much better at occupying good positions.

Martin will likely see this as a positive, but the paradox here is that the more Swansea tried to push forward, the more they highlighted a lack of real quality in certain key areas.

Often the final ball was bad. Movements are often stopped due to loss of concentration or lack of self-control. Joel Pirro worked hard up front but was often haunted by shadows for most of the game, often feeding on leftovers.

As a result, Ethan Horvath didn’t have much to do in the Luton Town goal, other than stopping substitute Morgan Whittaker.

Martin has already hinted at how much his team has missed the likes of Cyrus Christie and Hannes Wolff this season and how aggressive they are proving in the final third. Lack of bite certainly existed for everyone on Kenilworth Road.

No one can judge the level of effort. In fact, even this team’s confidence seems far beyond what it should be after this type of race.

But individual mistakes and shortcomings continue to cost them. The most notable example is when Andy Fisher scored the decisive goal.

It is likely that Martin will continue to get most of the attacking play, and indeed must take responsibility for this poor performance. Filed in the territory as admin.

But Saturday really showed that some of those players just aren’t at the level they should be right now.

Optics of the fight don’t look good for Martin

To say that Martin lost his temper a bit at the end of this meeting would be an understatement. The fight that broke out on the sidelines between the two benches even seemed to surprise several players on the pitch.

Martin and Rob Edwards then played it down, and there’s no reason to doubt that they managed to patch things up afterwards.

But when you’re under pressure, the optics around such incidents are never perfect. Indeed, a member of the media asked if the incident was a sign that he was under pressure.

The allegations were dismissed by the Swans boss, although it is a theory that will clearly have some traction in some quarters.

And while downplaying the importance of the fight, Martin admitted there was one decision that pissed him off.

Liam Cullen thought he had equalized after coming off the bench in the second half, but he was ruled offside. Replays showed it to be a tense challenge, although Martin was clearly in no doubt that the goal should have stood.

Commenting on his team’s improvement in the second half, he said: “I liked the mentality of the players on and off the ball, although we probably didn’t create clear enough chances.

“But we scored a good goal that wasn’t offside, which is frustrating, really frustrating.

“Therefore, I can accept defeat if we show unity, energy and desire to play in a difficult field.

“We need more of this but we are disappointed in the players and the fans.”

Alain got hurt again

The absence of Matt Grimes was obviously a blow. Indeed, one can’t help but wonder whether his presence at center might have given the Swans more authority in this competition.

Joe Allen came on to take the bracelet in his place, but his exit was cut short before half-time with a suspected muscle injury.

It’s a situation that will worry Martin, who currently doesn’t have many other top executives to turn to.

There may also be some concern for Allen himself, who just couldn’t start his second stint in SA1. His recent injuries were certainly a factor in this fight.

“I hope it’s not too bad,” said Martin. “It’s very disappointing, we lost Matt Grimes before the game and then Joe before the break, two leaders of our group.

“It’s tough for us but hopefully Joe won’t be out too long and Grimsey will be back next week at that rate.

“But I’m proud of the guys that performed. Ben Kabango was a true leader, Nathan Wood was amazing and Joel Latiboder was the best. Jay Fulton continued to do what he’s been doing this season and Joel Piro entered the game.

“We have a lot to be positive about. Joe is a concern, but hopefully not too serious.

“Joe feels like he caught it right before it got too bad, so I hope so.”

Paterson is eager to make an impact

It looks like we may very well have a sequel to Redemption of Jamie Patterson.

The 31-year-old was called up for the first time in nearly four months after appearing ready to play in January amid questions about his commitment and attitude.

Fan reaction was understandably somewhat mixed. Some believed this decision came from a place of desperation. Others began to fantasize that he would get away with scoring a dramatic victory against the Hatters.

In the end, reality was a bit anticlimactic. There were some clever touches, but ultimately it was a pretty muted cameo considering its potential importance.

Paterson clearly has baggage attached to him. After all, it is the second time that he participates in a confrontation of this type.

But there’s no denying that, in his prime, he has a skill level that will undoubtedly benefit this team.

“Obviously, it’s never easy to be left out. I just had to work hard and stay positive and help the group in different ways, which I think I did,” Paterson said afterwards.

“I’m happy to be back there and I just want to try and keep my place in the team and do as much as I can before the end of the season.

“All footballers want to be on the pitch so it was a tough time when you weren’t involved, but with all footballers you just have to stay positive and the guys were fine at the time.

“I just want to come back and do whatever I can to help the team on and off the field and get back to enjoying football because that’s what we all love to do.”

The anxiety surrounding his return is certainly justified. Sections of the Swansea fanbase can’t be blamed for being a little suspicious, and those feelings don’t go away overnight.

If Patterson is going to win back the doubters, he needs to rediscover something close to the form we saw from him last season.

If you are successful, past resentments can once again be put to rest.

Source: Wales Online