Ayew makes amends for penalty miss to give Swansea advantage

Swansea 1 Brentford 0

Andre Ayew’s superbly-worked goal earned Swansea City a 1-0 victory over Brentford in their Championship playoff semi-final first leg at their Liberty Stadium on Sunday.

Ayew had earlier had seen his penalty saved just past the hour mark before Brentford had Rico Henry sent off.

Swansea then swarmed all over Brentford seeking a crucial lead to take into the second leg next week and got it when Ayew fired into the top corner after an intricate build-up.

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Brentford, who have not been in the top flight since 1947, missed out on automatic promotion on Wednesday when they lost at home to Barnsley, meaning West Bromwich Albion finished runners-up behind Leeds United.

Swansea crept into the playoffs after a remarkable final round of fixtures in which they beat Reading 4-1 and jumped above Nottingham Forest, who lost 4-1, on goal difference.

Promotion to the Premier league is worth an estimated £170 million. Cardiff City take on Fulham in the other semi-final on Monday night.