Stuart Pearce, the caretaker national team manager, was on hand at the DW Stadium to run the rule over Swansea’s emerging English talent but it was Icelandic international midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson who dominated affairs with two superbly-struck goals.
Swansea, who played the final half hour with ten men after NathaN Dyer was shown red, took the lead in the first minute of first half injury- time from a Sigurdsson shot which illustrated how the hosts have managed to keep just two clean sheets in their last 23 games.
Having collected a pass from Steven Caulker, Sigurdsson was permitted time and space to take a controlling touch before curling an unstoppable shot into the top corner.
The advantage was little more than the visitors deserved for a dominant half in which Scott Sinclair came close to breaking the deadlock after 39 minutes, exchanging passes with Dyer and shooting goalwards only for James McCarthy to clear off the line.
Dyer himself had also come close, latching onto a superb pass from Sigurdsson inside two defenders only to see his shot saved well by the sprawling Al Habsi.
Major tactical re-shuffles by Wigan’s Roberto Martinez, the former Swans manager, at half-time led to an improvement with Angel Rangel denying Franco Di Santo as the home forward appeared poised to shoot and score after a Jordi Gomez free-kick.
But Swansea immediately responded with Joe Allen being played through by Danny Graham and only denied by another fine Al Habsi stop.
And after 54 minutes, Sigurdsson doubled the lead from a 25-yard free- kick, curling a right-foot free-kick around the post and past the goalkeeper after Dyer had been brought down by Antolin Alcaraz.
Dyer’s studs-up lunge at Gomez earned him a straight red and ensured a more difficult afternoon than should have been the case for his side, with Mohamed Diame’s terrific volley just clearing the bar as Wigan pressed for a way back.
But, apart from an effort from Hugo Rodallega who saw a shot parried by Michel Vorm as he burst purposefully into the Swansea area, Wigan were unable to lift themselves.
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