Sam Clucas netted twice as Swansea City recovered from a goal down to beat Arsenal 3-1 at the Liberty Stadium on Tuesday evening.
The Swans trailed to a Nacho Monreal strike 33 minutes in, which came against the run of play, but they soon hit back in style.
Clucas tucked the ball past Petr Cech twice, either side of Jordan Ayew's simple finish following a goalkeeping howler.
Relive how the 90 minutes of action unfolded with Sports Mole's live text coverage below.
Hello and welcome to Sports Mole's live text coverage of the Premier League meeting between Swansea City and Arsenal at the Liberty Stadium. The Swans have taken seven points from their last four games since changing manager and saw off Liverpool 1-0 in their most recent top-flight outing, while the visitors have managed to get their season just about back on track with two wins on the spin over the last 10 days.
This is a big match for both sides, then, with three points a must for Arsenal if they are to keep the pressure alive on the top four. Swansea, meanwhile, are rock bottom of the division - even after that memorable win over Liverpool a little over a week ago - and will be targeting at least a point from this fixture. There is plenty to get through between now and kickoff, so let us get straight into things by checking out some confirmed team news...
ARSENAL TEAM NEWS!
STARTING XI: Cech; Bellerin, Mustafi, Koscielny, Monreal; Elneny, Xhaka, Ramsey; Ozil, Lacazette, Iwobi
SUBS: Ospina, Chambers, Kolasinac, Maitland-Niles, Mkhitaryan, Nketiah, Giroud
The big team news from the Liberty Stadium is that Henrikh Mkhitaryan is only among the subs this evening, while Olivier Giroud is also among the back-up options. The Armenian playmaker was sent to the Emirates Stadium as a makeweight of sorts in the deal that saw Alexis Sanchez head to Manchester United, though there is real hope that he can slot into this Arsenal side - his style of play certainly suggests he will be a big hit.
The presence of Giroud on the bench is interesting, too, as he has been linked with a few different sides during the January transfer window. Still a little over 24 hours to go before it closes for business, but with the Frenchman involved tonight is does suggest he will not be going anywhere until the summer. It is Alexandre Lacazette who is tasked with leading the line once again, despite a record of two goals in 12 away league outings - the last coming at the Etihad Stadium in early November.
Mesut Ozil, tipped by some to sign a contract extension at the Emirates Stadium, starts alongside Lacazette in what is likely to be a three-man frontline, with Alex Iwobi on the other side. Aaron Ramsey is back in a central midfield position, meanwhile, tasked with linking up with Mohamed Elneny and Granit Xhaka. The introduction of Ramsey is the only change to the side that beat Chelsea in the EFL Cup last week, taking over from illness victim Jack Wilshere.
SWANSEA CITY TEAM NEWS!
STARTING XI: Fabianski; Naughton, Van der Hoorn, Fernandez, Mawson, Olsson; Clucas, Ki, Fer; Dyer; Ayew
SUBS: Nordfeldt, Bartley, Carroll, Routledge, Narsingh, Bony, Abraham
Just the one change made by Arsene Wenger from last time out, while opposite number Carlos Carvalhal sticks with an unchanged side from the 1-0 win over Liverpool. Plenty of changes made for the weekend cup tie at Notts County, as expected, but it is as you were in terms of their last Premier League outing. Jordan Ayew therefore leads the line ahead of the benched Tammy Abraham.
Swansea will go with five across the back, with Alfie Mawson, fit-again Federico Fernandez and Mike van der Hoorn occupying central spots. A big night ahead for Kyle Naughton and Martin Olsson at wing-back, as they will be tasked with getting up and down the pitch to relieve some pressure on their defensive teammates. Sam Clucas, Ki Sung-yueng and Nathan Dyer will bridge the gap between the back four and lone striker Ayew.
There is no Renato Sanches in the Swansea squad tonight due to an injury picked up against Notts County a few days back, though the Portuguese flop would unlikely have featured from the off tonight anyway. Abraham is among the subs once again, despite leading the Swans' scoring charts for the campaign with four of the Welsh outfit's 15 goals - the lowest tally of any side in the top flight. Wilfried Bony is the other option to call upon if required in the second half.
Minimal alterations made by the two sides, then, as Swansea City stick with the same XI that shocked Liverpool eight days ago, while Arsenal show just the one change from their 2-1 win over Chelsea in the EFL Cup. Jack Wilshere misses out entirely due to illness tonight, with his place taken by Wales international Aaron Ramsey - one of the goalscorers for the Gunners when these sides last faced off.
Swansea head into this match sitting rock bottom of the Premier League, three points from the safety mark. Due to their inferior goal difference, though, it is unlikely that they will drag themselves out of the bottom three even if they did pick up a second shock victory in the space of eight days. Things do not look quite as bleak as they did for the Swans prior to the Liverpool win, however, as they were six points adrift heading into that one.
The slender win here really was one of the standout results of the campaign, coming against a Liverpool side in superb form and unbeaten in a few months. It means that Swansea are actually only six points adrift of Watford in 10th place; two wins from their next two and all of a sudden things will look a lot more healthier at the bottom. Even a point would surely be considered a bonus from this fixture, though, particularly having snatched all three off the Reds.
Carvalhal deserves a lot of form for the Swans' turnaround in fortunes, with just one defeat in seven since his arrival on December 28. OK, a couple of those matches have seen Swansea held to draws by lower-league opposition in the FA Cup, but they have defeated Watford and Liverpool in the Premier League, while also taking a point from Newcastle at St James' Park - a healthy return that keeps them within touching distance of 17th place.
Swansea were at serious risk of being cut adrift, finding themselves six points from the safety mark with games against Liverpool and Arsenal to come. That victory over the Reds here last week has restored confidence around the Liberty Stadium, and all of a sudden three more points here and the Swans will wonder just what all the fuss was about! There is a full set of fixtures over the next 24 hours or so, with three of those games being played tonight.
Carvalhal's men also have a nice run of games to come following this tough assignment; trips to Leicester City and Brighton & Hove Albion, plus visits from Burnley and West Ham United over the next five weeks. Swansea do have an FA Cup run to contend with, too, having drawn 1-1 with Notts County to set up an unneeded replay in a week's time. Win that and only Sheffield Wednesday - Carvalhal's former suitors - stand in City's way for a place in the quarter-finals.
A warn of warning for the Welsh outfit, though - they have the worst home league record in the Premier League, earning just their third victory of the campaign when Liverpool visited last week. There have also been a couple of draws in the 12 matches held here, but on the flipside Arsenal have been pretty terrible on their travels over the last year or so, most recently going down 2-1 at Bournemouth.
On the subject of Arsenal's away form, they have won three out of 12 in 2017-18 and also lost at Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup earlier this month. A first win outside of North London this calendar year is now the challenge for Wenger and his players, as they seek to close the gap on the top four. Swansea will not make it easy for them, of course, and seven points from four games - two more than their previous 12 prior to Carvalhal's arrival - suggests this could be a tough evening.
With a little over 24 hours of the transfer window to go, Swansea are quite clearly on the lookout for some reinforcements. Andrew Ayew, Nicolas Gaitan and Lazar Markovic are the names to have been most strongly mentioned in recent days, though all three may well be out of their reach. Carvalhal has admitted that, if worst comes to worse and the Swans miss out on a new player or two, his task of survival will become a little more difficult.
Swansea City have collected seven points from four games under new boss Carlos Carvalhal, and have lost just one of seven matches in all competitions. There is no doubt that the Swans are a tougher team to beat now compared to this time a month ago, but they are still three points adrift of safety ahead of this very tough test against sixth-placed Arsenal.
Sixth place is not exactly where Arsenal want to be at this stage in the season, though, as finishing top was the target heading into the campaign. The addition of Alexandre Lacazette was supposed to mean far more goals but, arguably even more importantly, they did not have the Champions League to contend with between September and December. Not that it made much difference - the Gunners have dropped far too many points and are now left playing catch up.
Another battle for fourth place ensues, and should they miss out for a second season running serious questions will surely be asked of Wenger - his safety net of a Champions League berth is no longer there. The loss of Alexis Sanchez, arguably the Gunners most talented player, was also a major blow at the midway point in the campaign. Bringing in Mkhitaryan is not the worst consolation prize, however, and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang also appears likely to join.
Aubameyang was pictured arriving at Arsenal's training ground early, presumably to undergo a medical and finalise personal terms. It is understood that the Gunners have also finally agreed to pay Dortmund the £60m that they are after - a reasonable price, in fairness - but there is still a risk that the deal could fall through as the German club are seeking a replacement striker first. That one looks certain to go right down to the wire tomorrow night.
It is not the first time that Arsenal supporters have raised their expectations, though, only for their hopes to be shattered. Mkhitaryan has to get his career back on track in North London, having been shipped out of Old Trafford after scoring one and assisting five more in 13 Premier League outings this term, and Aubameyang can barely be afforded a 'bedding-in' period. Lacazette has had one of those and, it is fair to say, the jury is still out.
This could end up being a positive two weeks or so for Arsenal, though, as they appear likely to add Aubameyang to their squad, on top of the Mkhitaryan swoop, having also beat Chelsea to reach the EFL Cup final and put four past Palace. That 4-1 rout of the Eagles came here in their most recent league outing, running riot in the opening quarter of the contest before taking their foot off the gas.
Arsenal remain on course for more silverware this term thanks to that semi-final win over Chelsea - a result that only increased the pressure on Antonio Conte at Stamford Bridge. The Gunners are also still in the Europa League mix, with Ostersunds to come in the first round of the bloated knockout stage. Win that and surely Wenger will begin to take the competition far more seriously, as was the case for Jose Mourinho a year ago.
Two wins from eight games confirmed what many already knew - Arsenal are not good enough to compete for the title. The Gunners have since got back to winning ways, putting the pain of their Bournemouth debacle to one side and just about gaining some momentum heading into this match at a freezing cold Liberty Stadium. Three points is the gap on Tottenham one place above them, while Liverpool are a further two points in front.
DID YOU KNOW? Arsenal are attempting to avoid going five away matches in a row without victory in all competitions for the first time since November-December 2012. The Gunners boast a great record against the division's bottom-placed sides, though, winning 27 and losing just one against the various basement boys since a 4-2 defeat to Blackburn Rovers in September 2011.
Arsenal have taken just 13 points from 36 on the road this term - the ninth-best record in the division and something that they need to seriously improve on. Bournemouth proved early this month that the Gunners are there for the taking; Swansea need to replicate the blueprint set by the Cherries and they could be celebrating another famous win in the South Wales valleys come 10pm this evening.
With kickoff at the Liberty Stadium now just a couple of minutes away, let us check out some pre-match thoughts from both camps.
Carlos Carvalhal: "We need players to try and improve the team. It is not the case that I don't think we need players or want players. I want to make this very clear as they are very different things. I want players, but if I don't get players I still believe we will stay up. It will be harder [without new signings] but let's see."
Arsene Wenger: "What is a good warning for us is that Liverpool are an attacking team - you cannot criticise them for not attacking, they are very dangerous going forward and they didn't manage to score against Swansea. That is a good warning for us that we have to produce an absolute total offensive performance."
KICKOFF! We are under way in South Wales, where Swansea City are seeking to end a run of three-successive defeats against Arsenal. The Swans have actually won five of the last 13 top-flight encounters - only Chelsea and Manchester United, with seven apiece, have fared better over that period.
Swansea, with five across the back tonight, sitting back right from the off. The Swans did manage to get forward for the first time in the match a few moments ago, though, with Clucas drilling the ball into the middle before being cut out.
That Clucas cross into the middle aside, it has been all Arsenal in terms of possession thus far. Still awaiting the Gunners' first attempt of any note, however, as they attempt to find their range. Swansea happy to sit back for now.
SHOT! A theme developing already here, as Dyer leads a counter which ends with Ayew's shot deflecting off Koscielny narrowly wide of Cech's goal. From the next attack, Ramsey produced a superb block to prevent a back-post tap in.
A teasing ball into the box which just evades the boot of Ramsey. Swansea, despite living off scraps, have actually been the livelier of the two sides so far and would have been in front of not for that Ramsey block a couple of minutes ago.
Arsenal have not got going at all in these opening 11 minutes, being made to work particularly hard when getting on the ball in the final third. Fabianski, a former Gunners keeper, has yet to have emerged from his own goal-line.
PENALTY APPEAL! The Gunners really hard finding it difficult to create anything so far - an ominous sign. Swansea looking very bright, though, and felt they should have had a penalty when Elneny went through Clucas inside the box. I'll need to see a replay of that one...
A replay of that Elneny tackle shows that referee Lee Mason made a brilliant call - the defensive midfielder got the slightest of touches on the ball before taking out the player. Swansea cut their opponents open with his for that chance.
Swansea really enjoying themselves at the moment. With the surface wet, Ki tries his luck from range and the ball skids narrowly wide. Cech, who had it covered had it been on target, has certainly been the busier of the two goalkeepers.
Nearly a quarter of the way through the contest and Swansea have been the better of the two teams. Would not exactly say they deserve to be in front, but they have looked the more threatening in the final third of the field.
The movement of Arsenal's attacking players in incredibly poor; Lacazette is offering his creative teammates so little. This looks like the ideal game for new signing Henrikh Mkhitaryan to be introduced in and make a telling difference.
Monreal pulls the ball back and Van der Hoorn does not exactly deal with it. Lacazette was not expecting it, though, and it appeared to cannon off his leg and through for Fabianski. The French striker has been very disappointing so far.
Got to say, Swansea not looking like a team at risk of being cut adrift at the bottom of the table on the basis of the opening 25 minutes. The Arsenal defenders having to earn their money at the moment, with the Swans showing good movement in attack.
Swansea so close to an opener yet again, as Van der Hoorn gets in behind and sends the ball into the middle. It took a touch off on its way through, though, and was cleared behind for a corner. Arsenal having to hold on in South Wales.
SHOT! Mawson, who was denied by Ramsey's block a few yards out early on, comes close to a stunning opener. The defender attempted to pick out the bottom corner from the edge of the box, missing only by a matter of inches.
SAVE! A third of the way through the game and Arsenal have finally managed to create something. Some nice, quick interplay culminates in Lacazette feeding it through for Iwobi, whose shot was heading for the net if not for a strong Fabianski hand.
Superb play from Ayew to initially get away from his man. The forward carried the ball and then dragged it wide around 22 yards from goal, with some teammates better positioned either side of him. An entertaining game on our hands here.
GOAL! SWANSEA CITY 0-1 ARSENAL (NACHO MONREAL)
Swansea leave Ozil free for the first time all evening and it proves costly, as the German playmaker lifted the ball over the defence and Monreal was there to volley home towards the back post. A clinical finish from the full-back, who now has four goals for the campaign.
GOAL! SWANSEA CITY 1-1 ARSENAL (SAM CLUCAS)
Swansea are back on level terms around 90 seconds after falling behind - what a response! Clucas, whose only two goals for the Swans have come against Arsenal, tucks the ball past Cech after being played through by Mawson. As simple as you like. Game on!
Many will feel that Swansea deserved that equaliser, having fallen behind slightly against the run of play. It has been a great first half for the neutral, with a few chances and a couple of goals. Still plenty of time to go, too!
SHOT! Swansea just sliding right through Arsenal's midfield and defence. Leroy Fer is left one on one with a defender and has Jordan Ayew charging up alongside him, but sends a tame effort on goal for Petr Cech to collect.
Swansea give away a needless free kick which makes its way into the box and is never truly cleared. It was floated towards Koscielny who was waiting to pounce, only for the offside flag to go up against him - no complaints from the French defender.
The ball falls nicely for Xhaka to strike, but he sends it over the crossbar. Swansea pretty comfortable until Arsenal are given a chance to pass it around high up the pitch, which Carvalhal has no doubt noted ahead of the interval.
HALF TIME: SWANSEA CITY 1-1 ARSENAL
Swansea went with five across the back which made things difficult for Arsenal, particularly in the opening half an hour of the contest as they failed to create any sort of openings. Swansea were thriving on the counter, though, with Jordan Ayew sending a deflected shot inches wide after some impressive wing play from Nathan Dyer. Dyer was involved again moments later, this time sending in a back-post delivery that Alfie Mawson would have helped over the line if not for a last-ditch block from Aaron Ramsey, who was brought back into the side in place of illness victim Jack Wilshere.
The Swans felt that they should have had a penalty a quarter of the way through, but replays showed that Lee Mason - without the benefit of VAR - correctly spotted that Mohamed Elneny got a touch to the ball before taking out Sam Clucas inside the box. Mawson then sent a shot inches wide of the post, before the visitors - with three wins in a row in this fixture prior to today - finally clicked into gear.
Having looked like a weak link for large parts of the first half Alexandre Lacazette set up Alex Iwobi with a nice first-time pass, which the Nigerian forward struck well only to be denied by Lukasz Fabianski in the Swansea goal. Arsenal were in front three minutes later, however, with Mesut Ozil given too much time on the ball to loft it over the backline and into the path of Nacho Monreal, who still had work to do when tucking home his fourth goal of the campaign with a half-volley at the back post.
BENCH WATCH!
SWANSEA CITY SUBS: Nordfeldt, Bartley, Carroll, Routledge, Narsingh, Bony, Abraham
ARSENAL SUBS: Ospina, Chambers, Kolasinac, Maitland-Niles, Mkhitaryan, Nketiah, Giroud
RESTART! We are back up and running at the Liberty Stadium, where neither manager has made a half-time change. Arsenal emerged for the second half a little early, which suggests to me that Wenger was not happy with the first-half display.
Arsenal patiently probing away in the early stages of the second period. Swansea, like they did for large parts of the opening 45 minutes, standing firm to frustrate their opponents. Good effort from the Swans so far, it must be said.
Wenger will surely consider sending on Mkhitaryan on the hour should it remain this way. The Armenian playmaker bagged a ton of assists at Dortmund, and a fair few at United, boasting the ability to unpick the best of defences.
Naughton with a great cross from the right-hand side, which Clucas gets on the end of. The midfielder was a good 15 yards from goal, however, and was never likely to ask any sort of question of Cech from that range via his head.
Bellerin with a dangerous cross into the middle, where Van der Hoorn had to get his clearance perfect. The centre-back did just that, helping the ball behind for a corner kick. A bit of pressure now starting to build on the Swans.
YELLOW CARD! Slightly better from Arsenal in this second half but still not good enough. Elneny sticks out an arm to block the ball, earning the game's first yellow card in the process. Ayew would have been in behind if not for the illegal block.
SAVE! A bit of quality from Ozil to create a shooting chance, which he can only send down the middle where Fabianski was waiting to collect. Henrikh Mkhitaryan is being readied on the touchline with some final instructions...
ARSENAL SUB! Dyer does very well down the left and sends in a half-decent cross, which Cech read well to gather at full stretch on the ground. Here comes that first change, and a big one it is too - Mkhitaryan is on for his debut, taking over from Elneny.
GOAL! SWANSEA CITY 2-1 ARSENAL (JORDAN AYEW)
An absolute howler from Cech gifts Swansea the lead at the Liberty Stadium! Mustafi played the ball back to his keeper with a bit too much pace on it, but the experienced keeper really should have done better than miscue the ball into the path of Ayew for the simplest of finishes.
Mkhitaryan now on the field and Arsenal desperately need him to do something. Looks as though Giroud is the next player to be introduced from the bench, with Lacazette an obvious candidate to make way - he has been terrible tonight.
A pivotal moment in the match now; a pivotal moment in both sides' campaigns, in fact. Still no sign of the game's second change just yet, with Giroud being made to wait for his introduction despite Lacazette's struggles up top.
YELLOW CARD! Bellerin made an honest attempt to win the ball but failed to do so, giving away a free kick and earning a caution in the process. A bit of handbags before the ball eventually arrives in the box, and Cech again makes a mess of it by letting it slip through his grasp and out for a corner.
Arsenal really struggling to find any sort of momentum, which has been the case since the first whistle. Still Wenger watches on, and it should be 3-1 as Dyer has just squandered a great chance. Mustafi headed the ball into his path, but the shot was scuffed into the side-netting.
A chance for Mkhitaryan to get his side back on level terms, but his glanced header was right at Fabianski, and the offside flat had gone up regardless. A decent clipped ball over the top to create that chance - some hope for Arsenal!
ARSENAL SUB! Giroud, who has a good scoring record at this ground, is on for the final 15 minutes. This could, if some reports are to be believed, the Frenchman's final game in an Arsenal shirt - this season, at least! Iwobi makes way.
Lacazette, Ozil, Mkhitaryan and Giroud all on the field for the final stages of the match - will it make a difference? Truth be told, the Gunners have not truly looked like scoring since falling a goal down just after the hour mark.
Wenger still had another change available to make should he wish, while Carvalhal has all three. Some nice intricate play from Arsenal over the last couple of minutes, but still no chances being created for those attacking superstars.
All of a sudden we are into the final 10 minutes of the contest and Arsenal are now fast running out of time. A draw will seem like a defeat for the Swans at this point if they were to concede, having produced a superb display this evening.
SWANSEA CITY SUB! Swansea dropping deeper and deeper now, adding to the tension around the Liberty Stadium. Carvalhal turns to his bench for the first time, bringing off Dyer - who missed a big chance - and introducing Tom Carroll.
Ramsey so nearly played through by Giroud, but Van der Hoorn blocks his path to the ball. Real pressure now for Arsenal, though even at this stage Fabianski is having to do so little between the sticks. Surely a bombardment will follow...
GOAL! SWANSEA CITY 3-1 ARSENAL (SAM CLUCAS)
Swansea bag themselves a third goal of the evening and surely all three points. Great work from Ayew down the right yet again, and he picked out Clucas in the middle - via a touch from Mustafi - for the midfielder to blast past Cech for the second time today.
Arsenal heading for another away defeat here, with three minutes of added time to come. What a disastrous result this is going to be, as the pressure continues to build on long-serving boss Wenger. A miracle required now to salvage this one.
Swansea seeing this one through with ease, as we enter the final 60 seconds or so. Clucas has led the turnaround and makes way to a standing ovation from home supporters. The away end is quickly emptying now - they know this one is over.
FULL TIME: SWANSEA CITY 3-1 ARSENAL
Referee Lee Mason blows for full time, meaning that Swansea City are out of the relegation zone. Back-to-back wins over Liverpool and now Arsenal for them, with this their most impressive three-point haul in quite some time. The Swans were great from start to finish and rightly claimed the victory after falling a goal down.
That concludes Sports Mole's live text coverage of events at the Liberty Stadium. An on-the-whistle report can be found by clicking here, while reaction from this contest can be found elsewhere on the site shortly. Thanks for joining!
