Laudrup takes blame for row

The Welsh side cruised to a record 5-0 win over npower League Two Bradford, collecting the first major silverware in the club’s history in addition to booking their place in next season’s Europa League.

The only sour note for Swansea was the penalty row between Nathan Dyer and Jonathan de Guzman after the latter had been brought down by Bradford keeper Matt Duke inside the box.

As referee Kevin Friend brandished the red card to Duke and Bradford introduced Jon McLaughlin, Dyer attempted to wrest the responsibility away from De Guzman, knowing he was one goal away from becoming the first player to score a hat-trick in a League Cup final.

De Guzman would not back down, leaving Dyer simmering, although the pair did make up once the Dutch midfielder had scored.

Laudrup offered a simple explanation for the remarkable scenes.

‘‘There was no designated penalty taker. I forgot,’’ he said.

‘‘This was our 36th game of the season and it was our first penalty so it is my fault because I didn’t say who was going to take it if we got one.

‘‘I thought we would go through the whole season without getting one.’’ As it turned out, De Guzman also scored twice, wrapping up a handsome victory in stoppage time.

In addition Michu found the net, splitting Dyer’s brace, the wide man putting Swansea in front after 16 minutes and then curling home a superb effort just after the break.

It was part of a Swansea demolition job, with Bradford not managing a corner until the 83rd minute and a shot for two minutes after that as their remarkable story came to a shattering end.

‘‘To lift the trophy is great,’’ said Laudrup.

‘‘But the way we did it says a lot about our performance.

Swansea manager Michael Laudrup is lifted up by his players after the match

‘‘We all know what Bradford have done this season. It is absolutely outstanding.

‘‘This final will remain in the history books, a small part because of us, a large part because of Bradford.

‘‘That is why I am so happy with the way we did it.’’ It completed a hat-trick of Wembley wins for Laudrup, who was also successful at the stadium with Denmark against England in 1983 and 1992.

Laudrup refused to answer questions about his own future, although he admitted the victory, in Swansea’s centenary year, compared with any in an illustrious career.

‘‘It is one thing to win a trophy with Barcelona, Real Madrid or Juventus, but to win one with a smaller team like Swansea is absolutely fantastic,’’ he said.

‘‘It is their first major trophy ever and, especially in this season, is up there with the best things.’’ And it came just a decade after Swansea almost got relegated to the Conference.

‘‘This club nearly went out of League Two,’’ he said.

‘‘You are talking about your life. Two years ago they played to go from the Championship to the Premier League. That is a world of difference as well.

‘‘Maybe those two things are most important. But the first major trophy ranks highly in the history of any club.’’ Bradford manager Phil Parkinson refused to look on the bleak side, saying: ‘‘I would have loved to make more of a game of it but it was a tough afternoon.”

Bradford City captain Gary Jones has a shot at goal – his team’s only effort on goal 

Swansea formed a guard of honour at the bottom of the steps to applaud Bradford for their achievement in becoming the first tier four side to reach a major final at the world-famous stadium.

But Parkinson did leave with a sense of regret that Friend had not opted to keep Duke on the pitch rather than condemning him to become the first keeper to be sent off in a League Cup final.

‘‘The referee could have used his common-sense in the context of the game,’’ he said.

‘‘We were 3-0 down against a Premier League team and a penalty had just been awarded against us.”