Laudrup: Finishing cost us dearly

19th May

Michael Laudrup conceded his side's failure to make the most of their chances cost them dearly in the Swans' 3-0 defeat to Fulham on the final weekend of the Barclays Premier League season.
Alex Kacaniklic had given the visitors a half-time lead before Dimitar Berbatov and substitute Urby Emanuelson polished off a fine away win for Martin Jol's side as the curtain came down on the 2012-13 campaign.
It proved a disappointing conclusion for the Swans, though it has been a season to remember as Laudrup's side finished the campaign in ninth place along with lifting the Capital One Cup at Wembley.
But for Laudrup, the reasons behind this defeat - despite season his side dominate the vast majority of the game - were simple.
"We were okay in the first half, and had a great second half. But, as we've seen in other games, when you create a lot of chances but don't take them then sooner or later you will be punished," said the Great Dane.
"The difference was not scoring one of our chances. In the first 30 minutes, we could easily have scored two or three.
"But I'm not disappointed because this is not new for me. We know the areas where we have to work.
"We scored 47 goals this season, and I think we can add ten or 12 next season. A major part of the goals we have scored have gone to one person, so we need to share the responsibility of that.
"It's difficult to find these scorers, because they are expensive. We had five or six chances, but Berbatov gets one and the game is over.
"These players are out there, and other clubs are looking for them too.
"We know what we have to do. We can't expect to find a top scorer for next to nothing - we did last year, but you can't expect to win the lottery every year."