Swansea vs Crawley: Overview

In a compelling Carabao Cup First Round tie, Swansea City secured a convincing 3-1 victory over Crawley Town at the Swansea.com Stadium on Tuesday evening. The Championship side demonstrated their superior quality against League Two opposition, though the visitors put up a spirited fight that belied the two-division gap between the teams.

The match began with Swansea asserting early dominance, rewarded when Ronald found the net in the first half to give the Swans a deserved lead. The home team continued to control proceedings after the break, with Bobby Wales extending their advantage before Crawley's Kabongo Tshimanga briefly gave the traveling supporters hope with a well-taken goal. However, Ethan Galbraith's strike put the result beyond doubt, securing Swansea's passage to the second round.

The atmosphere at the Swansea.com Stadium was somewhat subdued with an attendance of just 5,095 – typical for early-round cup fixtures – but those present witnessed an entertaining contest that delivered plenty of goalmouth action. The match was particularly significant for Swansea manager Alan Sheehan, who saw his side claim their first competitive home win of the 2025/26 season.

Crawley's evening was further complicated when midfielder Gavan Holohan received his marching orders for violent conduct, effectively ending any realistic hopes of a comeback. Despite the defeat, Scott Lindsey's men can take pride in their performance against higher-division opposition, having made the Swans work hard for their victory.

This result sees Swansea progress in a competition that has historically provided them with memorable cup runs, while Crawley will now focus their attention back on their League Two campaign where they'll be hoping to build on last season's promotion.

"We're pleased to get through to the next round, which was our primary objective tonight," said Swansea City manager Alan Sheehan. "I thought we controlled large parts of the game, though credit to Crawley who made us work for the win. Ronald was excellent in the first half, and I was particularly pleased with how Ethan Galbraith dictated play in midfield. There are still areas we need to improve, but it's a positive start to our cup campaign."

"Obviously disappointed with the result, but I saw enough from my players to be encouraged," commented Crawley Town boss Scott Lindsey. "We competed well against a good Championship side for long periods. The red card was a turning point – until then, I felt we were still in the game. Kabongo took his goal very well, and that's something for us to build on moving forward."

"It's always special to score at the Swansea.com Stadium," said Swansea midfielder Ethan Galbraith. "We knew Crawley would be organized and make it difficult for us, but we stuck to our game plan and got the job done. The cup competitions are important to us this season, and we want to go as far as possible."

"We showed we can compete against teams from higher divisions," stated Crawley's goalscorer Kabongo Tshimanga. "Obviously the result didn't go our way, but there are positives to take back into our league campaign. Scoring at a Championship ground is a moment I'll remember, even if it wasn't enough on the night."

"Swansea's quality told in the end, but Crawley gave a good account of themselves," noted football analyst and former Swansea player Leon Britton. "You could see the difference in class at key moments, particularly when Swansea accelerated the tempo in the final third. The gulf between League Two and the Championship was evident, but not as pronounced as the betting odds might have suggested."

Possession: Swansea City 68% - 32% Crawley Town

Shots: Swansea City 17 (8 on target) - Crawley Town 7 (3 on target)

Corners: Swansea City 9 - Crawley Town 2

Fouls: Swansea City 7 - Crawley Town 14

Cards: Swansea City 0 yellow, 0 red - Crawley Town 1 yellow (Josh Flint), 1 red (Gavan Holohan)

Individual Performances:

Ronald (Swansea) - 1 goal, 3 key passes, 91% pass completion

Ethan Galbraith (Swansea) - 1 goal, 87 touches, 94% pass completion, 2 tackles

Bobby Wales (Swansea) - 1 goal, 2 shots on target

Kabongo Tshimanga (Crawley) - 1 goal, 2 shots on target, 14 touches in opposition box

Josh Flint (Crawley) - 3 tackles, 2 interceptions, 1 yellow card

Team Statistics:

Swansea completed 578 passes compared to Crawley's 214, highlighting the home side's dominance in possession. The Swans recorded an expected goals (xG) figure of 2.7 against Crawley's 0.8, reflecting the quality of chances created by both sides in the Football League Cup tie. Swansea's pressing was also more effective, winning the ball back in advanced areas 12 times compared to Crawley's 5 recoveries in the opposition half.

5': Bright start from Swansea with Žan Vipotnik forcing an early save from Harvey Davies in the Crawley goal.

23': GOAL! Swansea City 1-0 Crawley Town. Ronald breaks the deadlock with a well-placed finish after clever build-up play involving Ethan Galbraith. The Brazilian midfielder found space between Crawley's defensive lines and fired low into the bottom corner.

45': Half-time: Swansea City 1-0 Crawley Town. The hosts dominating possession but only one goal to show for their efforts.

58': GOAL! Swansea City 2-0 Crawley Town. Bobby Wales doubles Swansea's advantage, converting from close range after Davies could only parry Žan Vipotnik's powerful shot.

67': GOAL! Swansea City 2-1 Crawley Town. Kabongo Tshimanga reduces the deficit against the run of play, capitalizing on a defensive mix-up to slot past Andy Fisher. Momentary hope for the visitors.

72': RED CARD for Crawley's Gavan Holohan for violent conduct after a confrontation with Oliver Cooper. A significant blow to Crawley's comeback hopes.

77': Tactical shift by Swansea manager Alan Sheehan, moving to a more defensive 5-3-1 formation to counter Crawley's increased urgency despite being down to ten men.

81': GOAL! Swansea City 3-1 Crawley Town. Ethan Galbraith effectively ends the contest with a stunning strike from the edge of the box, giving Davies no chance in the Crawley goal.

90+3': Full-time: Swansea City 3-1 Crawley Town. The Championship side progress to the second round of the Carabao Cup with a professional performance.

This Carabao Cup encounter marked only the third competitive meeting between Swansea City and Crawley Town in their histories, with the Welsh side now holding a perfect record of three wins from three matches against the Sussex outfit.

Their previous encounters came in the 2018/19 season, also in the League Cup, where Swansea claimed a 3-0 victory, and in an FA Cup tie in 2012 which Swansea edged 1-0. Tonight's result continues Swansea's dominance in this fixture, though the margin of victory was narrower than in their previous cup meeting.

The key individual battle on the pitch proved to be between Swansea's midfield orchestrator Ethan Galbraith and Crawley's defensive midfielder Jay Williams. Galbraith ultimately won this duel, completing 94% of his passes compared to Williams' 76%, and capping his performance with a stunning goal. His ability to dictate the tempo proved crucial to Swansea's success.

In attack, Swansea's Ronald caused consistent problems for Crawley's central defensive pairing of Joy Mukena and Charlie Barker. The Brazilian found pockets of space between the lines and exploited them effectively, particularly in the first half.

Crawley's most effective performer was striker Kabongo Tshimanga, who worked tirelessly against Swansea's defensive unit of Cameron Burgess and Kaelan Casey. His goal was reward for his persistence, though he found opportunities limited as Swansea controlled possession for long periods.

Historically, these teams have operated at different levels of English football, with Swansea having Premier League experience while Crawley have primarily competed in the lower leagues. This gulf in status was reflected in tonight's performance, though Crawley showed enough quality to suggest they can be competitive in League Two this season.