Swansea City 1-2 Watford

Richarlison has scored twice in seven appearances for Watford

Richarlison struck in the 90th minute as Watford survived a Swansea City fightback to claim a dramatic win at the Liberty Stadium.

Andre Gray seized on hesitant home defending to put the Hornets in front from close range, and the abject Swans were arguably lucky not to be further behind at the break.

However, two half-time substitutions changed the course of the game and one of the replacements, Tammy Abraham, scored the equaliser after Wilfried Bony's initial shot was saved.

But after a spell of Swansea pressure, Richarlison stole the ball from Roque Mesa and evaded Alfie Mawson to scamper clear and score despite a touch from keeper Lukasz Fabianski.

A third victory from six Premier League games was the perfect riposte to last weekend's 6-0 thrashing by Manchester City, and gives Watford three consecutive top-flight away wins for the first time in their history as they rise to sixth in the table.

But for Swansea, who remain 14th, losing their first three home games of the season for the first time in their history gives head coach Paul Clement cause for concern.

• Reaction to Saturday's Premier League fixtures

• Relive Watford's late win over Swansea

Watford recover from a hammering

Despite that mauling at the hands of Manchester City a week ago, two wins and two draws had represented an encouraging start to life under Marco Silva for Watford.

The Hornets appeared to bear no scarring from that demolition at Vicarage Road as they made an assertive start, out-witting their opponents with crisp, one-touch passing and an urgency in attack which left Swansea looking ponderous and lethargic.

The dynamic of the game was encapsulated by the opening goal, as Andre Carrillo's low cross was only half-blocked by Sam Clucas, whose untimely intervention served to set up Gray for an emphatic finish in the top corner.

Watford were in total control and, although they could have scored a second goal had Carrillo not strayed offside, Silva may have been disappointed his side failed to turn their domination into a healthier lead.

The Portuguese certainly seemed irked on the touchline as Swansea equalised and gathered momentum in their search for a winner in the second half.

But Silva and Watford were reprieved when Mesa was dispossessed, allowing Richarlison to race clear, beat Mawson's weak challenge and score with a shot which clipped the crossbar on its way in.

Swansea's Jekyll and Hyde form

Swansea's season had been a tale of contrasting home and away form, keeping clean sheets in all three of their league matches on the road but failing to score in either of their games at the Liberty Stadium.

In the build-up to this match, Clement had called for an improvement in attack and, in an attempt to revitalise his frontline, he gave striker Bony a first league start since his transfer deadline day return from Manchester City.

However, that change made no difference to the misfiring Swans, whose first-half display against Watford was so listless that the home fans were booing and heckling their side's backward passes after less than half an hour.

The midfield three of Clucas, Tom Carroll and Leroy Fer lacked balance, almost entirely devoid of dynamism and creativity as they let the game pass them by.

Clement sensed as much and made two changes at the break, replacing Clucas with Mesa and bringing forward Abraham on for centre-back Mike van der Hoorn as he ditched the 5-3-2 formation for a more attacking 4-3-3 system.

It had the desired effect as Swansea were unrecognisable in the second half, playing with far greater intensity and pace.

Abraham's goal led to a prolonged spell of pressure from the hosts but, for all their possession and territory, their paucity of clear scoring opportunities spoke volumes of the team's glaring weakness: a lack of creativity and goals.

Man of the match - Kiko Femenia

Watford right-back Kiko Femenia combined smartly with Andre Carrillo as Watford dominated the first half and he defended well as Swansea improved in the second

The 34-year wait is over - stats

• Watford won their first away league game versus Swansea since February 1983, ending a five-game winless run.

• Swansea have lost three consecutive Premier League home games for the first time under one manager since January 2014 under Michael Laudrup.

• Richarlison has scored with two of his three shots on target in the Premier League.

• Andre Gray netted his first league goal in 510 minutes of action.

• Tammy Abraham has scored in three of his past six appearances in all competitions for Swansea, with this his first strike at the Liberty Stadium.

• Troy Deeney, who assisted Richarlison's winner, made his first goal contribution in 12 Premier League appearances.

'I feel disappointed for the fans'

Swansea manager Paul Clement: "We were trying to push to win and not lose. In the first half we played poorly. We changed in the second half, got back in it, pushed to win but we gifted them two goals.

"We weren't good enough over the 90. You can't just play well for 40 minutes.

"I feel disappointed for the fans. They've come to three home games and they've seen three loses. We've got to get a result away from home now."

Watford manager Marco Silva: "I'm really happy with the result. A third away victory in a row and I'm sure that's a first for the club.

"It's important the players don't lose focus and keep believing. When you believe, anything can happen.

"Our players work really hard and we're starting to build something in the changing room. Everyone is together and it's important to continue this way."

What's next?

Swansea travel to West Ham next Saturday while Watford go to West Brom (both 15:00 BST).