‘Chelsea deserved to come back !’

The Welsh side almost grabbed a battling victory before Diego Costa’s spectacular effort restored parity, and the manager admitted he could not argue with the outcome

Swansea boss Francesco Guidolin felt a draw was a fair result after his side let a second-half lead slip in their 2-2 draw with Chelsea at the Liberty Stadium.

An overhead kick by Diego Costa levelled a dramatic encounter that Swansea had dragged themselves back into after the Spain international opened the scoring in the first half.

A Gylfi Sigurdsson penalty and an opportunistic goal from Leroy Fer gave Swansea a 2-1 lead with just over an hour on the clock, but Costa struck again after 81 minutes to earn Chelsea a point that Guidolin admitted they deserved.

“Costa’s second goal was a very good goal,” Guidolin told Sky Sports. “He’s a very important fighter and striker.

“Chelsea didn’t deserve to lose the game but we’re happy because we got a point on the table.

“It’s important for our fans because the last two games we lost at home. It’s important because we can work better this week and take confidence. I am optimistic we can do better.”

Guidolin apologised to Swansea defender Neil Taylor, who was substituted after 42 minutes, saying he would ideally have made the change at half-time.

Taylor appeared far from happy to have been hauled off during the first half, but Guidolin said there was no rift between the pair after the game.

“Neil’s reaction [to being substituted] was normal,” said Guidolin. “He’s a good guy and he understood – there’s no problem between us. We spoke in the dressing room and there’s no problem.

“We needed a change of attitude and we played more aggressively. My team needed a reaction and I had to change something.

“The game changed after our first goal. Confidence is changing in my players. We have to be more confident. I trust my players.”