Swansea 4-1 Brentford: Daniel James and Bersant Celina net stunners

If Graham Potter had a hat, Swansea’s owners would likely find a way to sell it. And yet still he pulls out the rabbits, still he finds a way to sprinkle a little magic at a club otherwise smelling of neglect.

This resurrection act being a case in point – Swansea were going nowhere, a useless shell of a team in a first half that finished 1-0 to Brentford.

And then from nowhere came a baffling second half, four very good goals and a place in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup. Major credit goes to the players, of course, and mostly to Daniel James and Bersant Celina – their goals alone were exceptional.

But Potter is the constant heartbeat at a club that in too many other areas seems willing to die. The owners sell and sell and sell and no one comes in – it is not what he was promised. Not at all. Yet he has them punching above their circumstances in the Championship and retaining enough belief and pride needed to transform matches like this.

To do it with a starting line-up of youngsters is all the more impressive - no fewer than seven of the starting XI here was 23 or younger – and you have to wonder what he might achieve if the club’s hierarchy spent some cash.

That is fanciful, though. Regrettably so. Indeed, they are lucky to even have James given how close he was on deadline day to joining Leeds in the great ongoing clearance sale that has followed relegation. He only stayed by virtue of the late intervention of Huw Jenkins, in his last meaningful act as chairman.

In the context of this cup run, it was an important intervention, as it was James who scored the wonderful second after a Luke Daniels’ own goal had brought Swansea level at the start of the second half. From there, Celina got a fine third and George Byers wrapped up it all up.

To understand the scale of the comeback, you have to appreciate how bad Swansea were in the first half against a Brentford side flying with only one defeat in 12.

It bordered on a mismatch. Swansea were swept aside with the sole exception of one passage six minutes in, when George Byers sent an in-swinger to the far post and Oli McBurnie fell inches short of connecting with a diving header.

Beyond that high point, Swansea offered almost nothing, just a few confused patterns of passing that led to no one and nowhere. Take the final move before half-time as an example – at 1-0 down, with time just about up, they put the breaks on an attack, returned the ball to their own half and ran out the clock. The fans went berserk and the whole scene seemed painfully apt for a club that has taken to weird acts of self-destruction in recent times.

Brentford, for their part, were light on clear chances in that opening half, but what they did have was purpose and threat, particularly through Sergi Canos on the right wing. Time and again he beat Kyle Naughton to the punch.

The breakthrough goal on 28 minutes was delightful, a quick perfect counter led by Said Benrahma before he nudged possession on to Neal Maupay. Maupay drew in Cameron Carter-Vickers and then rolled right to free Ollie Watkins, who finished. Good stuff, and only one winner from there.

Except then with the second half, it all turned quite brilliantly. In the first instance, Swansea levelled when Bersant Celina’s free-kick came back off a post, hit Luke Daniels on the back and ricocheted across the line.

The second goal, from James, was absurd. Brentford had been lining up on Swansea’s area when James charged down a shot from Maupay and set off on an extraordinary run that took him the better part of 70 yards, and past three men, on his route to scoring. Stunning.

Brentford had Ezri Konsa sent off for bringing down James as last man and Celina got a lovely third by beating two men and curling past Daniels. A fourth, scored by Connor Roberts, was disallowed for offside, before George Byers got on the board with a roll past Daniels from 20 yards.