Monk Disappointed At Missed Opportunity

Garry Monk has spoke of his disappointment at missing out on a League Cup Quarter Final spot after Lee Williamson's goal sent the Swan's crashing to defeat.

It was the first defeat City have suffered at the Liberty Stadium since April and it has cost them a lucrative last - eight spot against a top Premiership side.

The skipper spoke to BBC Sport after the game:

"It`s disappointing to lose any game, but obviously with the opportunity to get into a quarter final tonight we`re very disappointed," said Monk.

"There wasn`t any fluency to our game and we struggled to get into our usual passing game. Credit to them, they came and closed down our high tempo but I think it was more to do with ourselves than them."

"There weren`t many chances in the whole game but they took theirs. We`re all disappointed to lose our first game (at home) but thankfully it was in the cup and not in the league, but that`s not any consolation to us."

Monk admitted that the lack of match practice for a lot of the night's starting line - up proved costly in the end.

"There were wholesale changes, sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn`t. The effort was there but I think that the sharpness and freshness that comes with playing games wasn`t there tonight.'

'Some of the lads haven`t played at that sort of pace for a while now. That sharpness and freshness was our downfall really."

"The next round there would have been big teams involved and the likelihood is we would have drawn one of them. It`s really disappointing, especially with that carrot dangling there at the end of it."

"We have to bounce straight back. We have shown in the past that we can do it and we have to go to Norwich and get a positive result."

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