Watford hosted Swansea City in the Premier League in front of an expectant home crowd looking for their first win of the season.
The home side had the better chances in the opening period, but the sides went in level at the break.
Odion Ighalo put Watford ahead in the 59th minute, but were left to hang on for victory after Valon Behrami was shown a straight red card for a challenge on Andre Ayew.
Read how it all unfolded in our minute-by minute live commentary below.
Thanks for joining me for this afternoon's game between Watford and Swansea City from Vicarage Road! Let's hope that there are plenty of goals, but before all the action, let's take a look at the two teams.
WATFORD STARTING XI: Gomes; Nyom, Prödl, Cathcart, Anya; Behrami, Capoue; Jurado, Ighalo, Abdi; Deeney
SUBS: Arlauskis, Holebas, Watson, Berghuis, Diamanti, Dyer, Ibarbo
SUBS: Arlauskis, Holebas, Watson, Berghuis, Diamanti, Dyer, Ibarbo
SWANSEA STARTING XI: Fabianski; Naughton, Fernandez, Williams, Taylor; Cork, Shelvey; Sigurdsson, Routledge, Ayew; Gomis
SUBS: Nordfeldt, Bartley, Rangel, Ki, Emnes, Montero, Eder
SUBS: Nordfeldt, Bartley, Rangel, Ki, Emnes, Montero, Eder
There's just the one change for Watford then, with Jose Holebas being replaced by Ikechi Anya at left-back. There's no place in the matchday squad for new additions Victor Ibarbo, Obbi Oulare or Adlene Guedioura.
Monk has maintained faith with the same Swansea side that beat Manchester United 2-1 two weeks ago, and why wouldn't he? Bafetimbi Gomis starts upfront and will look to notch his fifth Premier League goal of the campaign, while Andre Ayew - the August Player of the Month - is also in the starting XI. Jefferson Montero returns from injury, but has to settle for a place on the substitutes bench.
UPDATE: Less than 15 minutes to go at Goodison Park where Everton lead Chelsea 2-1. Can the Premier League champions put a stop to their poor early-season form? Follow the final stages of the game here.
Odion Ighalo starts for Watford just a day after penning a new five-year deal with the Hornets. He scored on the opening day of the season, but his side are yet to register a single goal since the 2-2 draw with Everton. This will be their third home game of the season, and they surely must start picking up wins at home if they are to survive the drop.
UPDATE: Steven Naismith has completed his hat-trick at Goodison Park, where Everton now lead Chelsea 3-1 with only a few minutes remaining. It looks as though Chelsea will remain on four points - yes four! - after five games. Remarkable!
Back to Vicarage Road, and Swansea are certainly favourites for this one. They've already held Chelsea at Stamford Bridge and beaten Man Utd this season. Here's what the Sports Mole team had to say about the game:
Swansea certainly look like they side who are more likely to win today. In Gomis, they have a striker who has scored in every game this season, while Ayew was the August Player of the Month.
Another in-form Swans player is Jonjo Shelvey, who was called up to the England squad for the recent games against San Marino and Switzerland. The midfielder earned his first international start away at San Marino and kept his place in the side for the victory over Switzerland. He's certainly a confident chap, and he believes that Swansea can even achieve a Champions League spot this term.
UPDATE: That's it, the final whistle has gone at Goodison Park and Everton have beaten Chelsea 3-1 thanks to a Naismith hat-trick. Why don't you hop over and take a glance at Christopher Dodd's match report before coming back here. I for one can't wait for Jose Mourinho's post-match interview. Expect fireworks!
A win could lift Swansea into second place today, should other results go their way. Watford, meanwhile, could climb as high as ninth if they manage to claim all three points.
Here he is, the man of the hour. If Gomis finds the back of the net today, he'll become the first Swansea player to score in each of the first five games of the season.
This man will be looking to re-write the club's record books if he finds the net against @WatfordFC today. #WATSWA pic.twitter.com/bnbvL2zD7q
— Swansea City FC (@SwansOfficial) September 12, 2015
PREDICTION: Just a few minutes until kickoff, so that means it's time to put my neck on the line. I reckon Swansea will be too strong for Watford today and sneak a 1-0 away win.
It's a relatively warm day at Vicarage Road, with a bit of late summer sun warming the fans inside the stadium. The teams should be on their way out any second now...
KICK OFF: We're underway!
Watford look to disrupt Swansea in the early stages with a couple of launched clearances. Fabianski almost lets the ball squirm away from him as Ighalo closes down, and the goalkeeper has to nip the ball out for a throw-in.
A nervy start for Fabianski, but Swansea have now calmed down and have got hold of the ball. Ayew tries to slip Gomis in down the left flank, but Prodl reads the pass well and intercepts. The Watford defence will have to be alert to stop those two combining this afternoon.
Shelvey's long ball finds Routledge coming in from the right flank and the winger goes down after a strong challenge from Prodl, but the referee waves away the complaints. Capoue's hobbling now after a late Cork challenge. He's fine to continue though. A couple of hefty challenges early on!
Watford have settled into the game now and are keeping the ball well. Anya surges forward from full-back and finds Jurado on the overlap. Although the initial cross is cleared, Anya draws a foul from Naughton and Watford now have a free kick in a dangerous area.
The free kick is poor though and Gomis easily clears at the near post. That's so disappointing and Quique Flores will be livid.
Ighalo rolls Fernandez in the left channel and the Swansea centre-back can do nothing but tug the forward back after getting too tight. He's lucky to escape without a booking. Can Jurado put in a better delivery this time?
CHANCE! The answer is no, but although Swansea clear the first cross, the ball is worked to Prodl in the second phase. It's a tough chance for the defender though, who cuts across the half volley and sends it flying over the bar.
My word, Gomis is strong. The forward comes short to collect the ball and holds Capoue off with ease. He wins a free kick for his side just inside the Watford half.
Shelvey finds space on the right flank, but the midfielder's intended cross flies into the stand behind Gomes's goal.
It's been a very scrappy opening 15 minutes, with neither side able to forge a real chance.
SHOT! Deeney fires a shot goalwards after good work by Nyom down the right side, but Williams stands firm to block the shot. Much better from Watford, who showed a nice burst of pace to escape the Swansea challenges.
CLOSE! Abdi is inches away from the opener with a deflected shot from 20 yards - it drops agonisingly wide! Wonderful approach play from the hosts, with Deeney and Ighalo showing some delicate touches in the build up.
Watford are looking good now. Deeney forces Williams into a mistake and Igahlo races away on the left wing, before cutting inside and trying to find his teammate with a cross. Fabianski does well to gather the ball though with Deeney lurking at the far post.
SAVE! Well, well, well! This game has come alive! Ayew rolls the ball into Gomis, who turns and fires a shot towards the bottom corner rom 18 yards, but Gomes gets down well the beat the powerful strike to safety. A glimpse of Swansea's threat, there.
Abdi goes for the spectacular with a first-time volley from 30 yards, but he slices it high and wide. It draws applause from the crowd though and they'll be pleased with what they've seen in the opening quarter of the match.
CLOSE! This is even closer than Abdi's earlier strike! The Watford strike duo combine well again, with Deeney playing a neat one-two with Ighalo before the former slides in a right-footed shot from 18 yards, but it rolls just wide of the right-hand post. Very promising play from Watford yet again.
Jurado is released inside the box, but instead of taking the shot on his left foot, he tries to turn back inside onto his favoured right side and Naughton recovers well to nip the ball away. Swansea are pegged in here and can't get out of their own half.
I tell you what, I've just seen a replay of Shelvey's challenge a couple of minutes ago and it is wild to say the least. He leads with his right leg and wins the ball firmly, but his trailing left leg swings into the back of his opponent's foot and it is certainly reckless. Lucky boy.
A sustained period of Swansea possession for the first time in the game. They'll be grateful just to get their breath back after the last 10 minutes!
Shelvey swings the ball into Gomis from a deep position, but the forward is offside. That's the third time he's strayed into an offside position, and at the moment his team just need him to hold the ball up for a bit.
Naughton squares the ball to Sigurdsson on the edge of the box, but steps over it to allow the advancing Shelvey a shot from 25 yards. It seems to catch the midfielder by surprise though, and he snatches at the shot, which is easily blocked by Cathcart.
Behrami does well to track the run of Ayew and prevent the winger from getting a cross in. He's a really dogged player who'll leave nothing on the pitch and he's won his side the ball back there.
A poor Prodl clearance only reaches Ayew, who feeds it into Gomis. The forward quickly passes it into Shelvey, but with Watford out of position at the back, he gives the ball to Nyom as he tries to pull off a slide-rule pass. He had other options.
SAVE! Absolute chaos! Anya inexplicably tries to shield the ball out near the corner flag, but is dispossessed by Ayew. The winger feeds the ball into Gomis - who is lying on the floor after a collision with Cathcart - and the forward scrambles a shot towards goal from his prone position, but Gomes clutches the snapshot to his chest.
Another poor Watford free kick right on the edge of the box almost lands them in trouble as Swansea break in numbers, but Shelvey's cross from the left wing is cleared.
SAVE! Igahlo wriggles free of Fernandez and reaches the byline, but instead of cutting the ball back to a teammate he tries his luck from an acute angle and Fabianski blocks the shot with his legs. A few moments later, Deeney is claiming a penalty as Naughton leans into him to prevent the forward connecting with a cross, but the referee gives nothing.
A spectacular save from Gomes to prevent his namesake Gomis's overhead kick, but the flag had already been raised for offside.
ONE MINUTE OF ADDED TIME TO BE PLAYED
HALF TIME: Watford 0-0 Swansea
Watford will be very happy with that first half. They've certainly created more openings and have come agonisingly close on two occasions. Swansea have been a threat too though, and Gomis forced a fine save from Gomes with a spin and shot before drawing a spectacular save on the stroke of half time, although he was offside for his second effort.
UPDATE: There have only been two goals in the 3pm Premier League kick offs so far. Arsenal lead Stoke City 1-0 at the break, while Cameron Jerome has put Norwich City 1-0 up over Bournemouth. The big news from the Etihad is that Sergio Aguero left the field after 20 minutes with an injury. That's sure to have ruined a fair few fantasy football sides... Earlier, a Steven Naismith hat-trick saw Everton triumph 3-1 at home to Chelsea.
Swansea are usually so assured on the ball, but they've panicked in possession today and have struggled to get out of their own half on occasions. Watford have impressed, but they've only had one shot on target so far. It's symptomatic of the Hornets, who haven't scored since the first day of the season. They must start putting the ball in the back of the net when they are on top if they are to survive.
KICK OFF: Swansea get us back underway in the second period. Will we see goals in the next 45 minutes?
Shelvey launches a ball upfront to Gomis, who collects the ball after some hesitancy from Cathcart. Watford can't afford to do that with the in-form striker lurking.
A dangerous delivery from Naughton forces Prodl into a panicked clearance. Corner to Swansea, but Shelvey's delivery is cleared.
Not much to report so far in the second half, except that Swansea look a far more settled side. They will have definitely welcomed the break after a difficult opening period.
Another woeful corner from Shelvey, which barely gets off the floor and is cleared with the minimum of fuss. What is it with professional footballers consistently taking poor set pieces? Why is it so difficult?
Capoue swings in a cross towards Deeney, but gets far too much on and and the ball flies out for a Swansea throw-in.
Abdi has the first shot of the half, but I'm being generous in calling it that. He found himself half-a-yard of space from 30 yards, but it trundled pathetically towards Fabianski, who picked it up with ease. Not exactly an enthralling first 10 minutes of the second half.
Naughton grapples with Jurado and concedes a free kick roughly 30 yards from goal on the left flank. Abdi has taken over from Jurado on the set piece duty... but his delivery is just as poor and Gomis heads away again.
WIDE! Ighalo latches on to Deeney's flick on and races away from Fernandez, but slices his shot wide of the near post under pressure. A poor finish, but the Watford forwards have certainly got a good understanding.
GOAL! (Ighalo) Watford 1-0 Swansea
It's there! Watford's first home goal of the season! It's such a simple one, too. A long punt upfield draws three Swansea defenders towards the ball, but Deeney wins it ahead of all of them. His clever headed pass releases Ighalo, who is left with the simplest of tasks in slotting the ball home from 12 yards out. The home side have deserved that!
Williams clatters into the back of the goalscorer in an act of retribution. He was the closest player to Ighalo just a few moments ago, but was caught ball watching and allowed the Watford forward to find space inside the area. Monk will not be happy with his back four.
SUBSTITUTION: Immediately after the goal, Montero was brought on to replace Routledge. Nyom will have to be on his toes to keep the Ecuadorian winger in check.
RED CARD! Behrami's been shown a straight red card for a challenge on Ayew. The Swiss midfielder was initially claiming a foul himself, but the referee's made the right decision. He stamped on Ayew's knee and it was a disgusting, reckless challenge. Horrible to see.
SUBSTITUTION: Ki replaces Cork for Swansea, while Abdi makes way for Watson as Watford also make a change.
Luckily Ayew is back on the field after treatment. It was a cowardly tackle by Behrami and he's left his team in the lurch here.
BOOKING: Ki's first involvement is a lunging tackle on Ighalo which draws a yellow card.
We've got a great final 20 minutes or so on our hands now. Watford lead and have been the better side, but they're down to 10 men after Behrami's stupid red card. Can they hold on?
SHOT! There's a gaping hole in the middle of Swansea's midfield after Cork left the pitch and Jurado sees a shot blocked by Williams before sending another shot wide of the far post.
SUBSTITUTION: The goalscorer Ighalo hobbles off the pitch to be replaced by Berghuis, while Eder comes on for Swansea. Sigurdsson leaves the pitch and Swansea go with two up top.
OUCH! Wow! A clattering challenge from Eder literally seconds after coming on! He bashes into Gomes and the goalkeeper is only just picking himself up after a couple of minutes of treatment.
I've just seen a replay of Behrami's 'tackle' on Ayew and it gets worse and worse with every watch. He stamps with real aggression on Ayew's knee and then has the temerity the squeal as if he had been hurt.
Swansea had a real chance to test Gomes after Shelvey found Montero in acres of space at left wing, but the winger tried to cut inside and tee up a teammate, but a flood of Watford shirts scrambled the ball clear. He should have been selfish and gone alone.
We've lost a football. Fernandez skies an ambitious shot from 30 yards. Quite how he got that much elevation on it I'll never know.
Montero leaves his studs on Nyom as the full-back clears the ball. The referee has done well to diffuse the situation, as there was no malicious intent from the winger.
Capoue draws a save from Fabianski after a surging run to the edge of the box, but it was a comfortable stop for the goalkeeper.
Montero's a tricky customer, but his final product often leaves a lot to be desired. The ball breaks to him after some good work by Ki, but he flashes a wild shot over the bar.
UPDATE: Norwich now lead Bournemouth 3-0! Aside from this game, that's the only 3pm kickoff which has seen any second-half goals.
Anya races away into acres of space on the left flank as Watford break in plenty of numbers, but Taylor comes across well to prevent the full-back from finding Deeney, who was waiting unmarked inside the area.
SUBSTITUTION: The third and final Watford change sees Diamanti replace the captain Deeney.
Swansea at sixes and sevens at the back, with Taylor and Williams making a hash of clearing the ball, but they get away with it.
Swansea haven't really created any chances since Watford went down to 10 men. Time is running out. Can they find a leveller?
The Watford fans are in full voice as they can sense the first victory of the season. Three minutes plus added time to hold on!
Swansea are keeping the ball well, but are struggling for width. As Ki collects the ball, there are five Swansea attackers standing within the width of the goal 18 yards out. Montero is the one player holding his width on the left, but he sends yet another wayward cross into the stands. His delivery has been abysmal since his introduction.
SAVE! Gomes saves Shelvey's 25-yard shot, but spills it at the feet of Eder. He reacts fantastically though to bravely gather the loose ball amongst a mass of flying boots.
SEVEN MINUTES OF ADDED TIME TO BE PLAYED
Seven minutes?! Goodness me, I don't know where the officials have plucked that figure from! All hands to the deck for Watford.
CHANCE! Swansea have a corner. Can they actually put in a good delivery this time? Yes, but it's cleared and Watford surge forward. Anya leads the charge again and finds Berghuis, who sees two shots saved by Fabianski.
BOOKING: Capoue has been booked for preventing a Swansea breakaway. Taking one for the team!
Eder is sent tumbling in the box, but the referee is not interested. Desperate measures for Swansea, who have Fernandez at right wing. God knows why.
CHANCE! WHAT. A. CHANCE! For once, Montero floats a good ball to the far post and it finds Fernandez unmarked. The centre-back doesn't even have to jump to connect with the ball, but he skews his free header from six yards well wide of the far post. That was the chance!
Jurado has the opportunity to work a goalscoring opportunity, but he heads to the corner flag. Just seconds left.
That will be that. Gomes has been penalised for a high foot.
FULL TIME: Watford 1-0 Swansea
Watford have their first win of the season! They fully deserved the victory today and were by far the better side in the first half. They showed real grit and determination to see out the final 25 minutes plus added time with 10 men.
For all the credit Watford deserve, Swansea will be disappointed with their display. They've played some swashbuckling stuff at times this season, but were off the pace today and didn't really test Gomes at all.
Before I go, let me point you in the direction of Darren Plant's match report from today's game at Vicarage Road.
Thanks for joining me this afternoon, but don't go anywhere! There will be plenty of reaction on Sports Mole and of course, live text commentary of Manchester United's clash with Liverpool, which you can find here. How's that for a tasty teatime treat?!
Written by
Kristian Johnson
Kristian Johnson
