PREMIER LEAGUE

SWANSEA stopped the rot with a victory over Stoke, but remain in the bottom three.

Fernando Llorente’s early header and a deflected Tom Carroll second-half strike gave Swansea their first win in seven games and lifted some of the gloom around the Liberty Stadium.

Swansea were given a huge helping hand when, with the score at 1-0, Marko Arnautovic blazed his 69th-minute penalty high over the crossbar and into the disbelieving Stoke supporters behind the goal.

Hull stay two points clear of Swansea in 17th place after they beat Watford 2-0 on Humberside.

That was a game Swansea boss Paul Clement predicted Hull would win, calling on his players to take care of their own business and end a run of one point from six games.

Stoke’s England goalkeeper Jack Butland started for the first time since fracturing his ankle on international duty 13 months ago.

Butland had a torrid time in the first half and was beaten after 10 minutes when Llorente met Gylfi Sigurdsson’s corner to head home.

Sigurdsson was the focal point of every Swansea attack, revelling in a more central role after Clement had reverted to a diamond formation.

Swansea lost some momentum when Leroy Fer limped away from the action, and Stoke should have equalised with the final attack of the first half but Berahino failed to convert Peter Crouch’s neat knockdown.

It was similarly frantic after the restart with chances for Federico Fernandez and Crouch helping Stoke to get on the front foot.

Swansea replaced Llorente midway through the second half, changing formation too, which boosted a buoyant Stoke.

It was a decision that nearly cost them when Shaqiri was bundled over in the box by Fernandez, but Arnautovic’s spot-kick was wild and when Carroll’s deflected effort put Swansea 2-0 up soon after, the win was sealed for the Swans.