Watford 1 Swansea City 2
Carlos Carvalhal’s first game in charge of Swansea ended in a dramatic 2-1 win at Watford.
The Premier League’s bottom side were trailing to Peruvian winger Andre Carrillo’s goal and staring at another damaging defeat with four minutes remaining.
But Jordan Ayew sparked the revival and substitute Luciano Narsingh completed a thrilling comeback to secure only a second win in 13 matches for the Swans.
Carvalhal was a surprise choice to replace Paul Clement as Swans manager this week having only lost his job at Championship Sheffield Wednesday four days earlier.
Yet his unconventional personal promotion could last longer than the six months most Swans fans envisaged if his new side show the spirit they demonstrated at Vicarage Road.
Bournemouth 2 Everton 1
Ryan Fraser scored a vital double as Bournemouth edged Everton 2-1 for their first win in nine Premier League games.
The Scotland forward plundered the Cherries’ first league victory since November thanks to a late strike that flew home via a heavy deflection off visiting defender Michael Keane.
Idrissa Gueye’s second-half goal had cancelled out Bournemouth’s initial lead, but Fraser pounced to end Sam Allardyce’s seven-match unbeaten start to life in the Toffees’ hot-seat.
Fraser’s double lifted Bournemouth out of the relegation zone and five places up the Premier League table, easing pressure on manager Eddie Howe.
The Cherries’ first win since their 4-0 thumping of Huddersfield on November 18th ensured the Dean Court men avoided setting a hugely unwanted new club record winless Premier League run.
Newcastle United 0 Brighton & Hove Albion 0
Rafael Benitez was left frustrated after a 0-0 draw as misfiring Newcastle failed to claim the three points they had targeted against Brighton.
The Spaniard controversially rested many of his bigger names for Manchester City’s visit to St James’ Park on Wednesday evening.
He later denied doing so with one eye on the Seagulls’ visit to Tyneside but had hoped they would return with all guns blazing for a must-win clash with last season’s promotion rivals.
However, although Brighton keeper Matt Ryan had to make good saves from Isaac Hayden and Dwight Gayle, the technically superior visitors enjoyed the better of the game and might have emerged with more than a point had Karl Darlow not managed to repel Lewis Dunk’s 68th-minute header.
Ultimately it was they who left the happier with the Magpies having now taken 19 points from their first 21 games and needing to improve significantly over what remains of the season if they are to stay up.
Huddersfield Town 0 Burnley 0
Huddersfield brought a remarkable year to a close by extending their unbeaten Premier League run to four matches after a goalless home draw against Burnley.
Two of the top flight’s surprise packages this season showed typical endeavour but ultimately cancelled each other out, while Burnley were left to rue a controversial second-half penalty decision which went against them.
Huddersfield have ended 2017 in 11th place in their first season in the Premier League, having lost only one of their last five matches, and Burnley remain in seventh — now seven points adrift of the top four — after one defeat in their last six.
