Sometimes the third time really is the charm. Three coaches into the season, Swansea City look to have finally found their man in Paul Clement.

Here’s how the new manager bump normally goes: a struggling club fires its coach, and whether through fear about their job security or a new strategic approach, players start performing at a higher level. But this is usually only temporary. Opponents figure out how to deal with the new tactical approach and players revert back to the form that got them in the mess in the first place. Sometimes, though, a team actually makes the right hire and is able to reverse its fortunes. And that’s exactly what Swansea appear to have done with Clement.

On Saturday, the longtime assistant guided his side to its fourth victory in seven games since he took over — or as many as they earned from the previous 20 games. The 3-2 win over a very solid Burnley was a dramatic back-and-forth affair, and would have been marred by controversy had Fernando Llorente not headed home a winner in stoppage time.

With Swansea leading 1-0 in the 20th minute through a header from Llorente, ref Anthony Taylor awarded Burnley a penalty following a handball in the Swans’ box. He was right in thinking there had been handball, except that the guilty party was the Clarets’ Sam Vokes, not a member of the defending team. Andre Grey knocked home the spot kick to level the score, leaving Swansea feeling justifiably wronged, a feeling that only intensified in the 61st minute, when Grey smashed home another goal to put his side up one.

But Swasnea didn’t go down easily. Eight minutes later, Martin Olsson took a clever heel flick from Gylfi Sigurðsson, weaved through the defense and thundered the ball into the top of the goal to tie it 2-2. And in the 91st, Llorente rose above the Burnley defense to head a delectable cross into the back of the net that set off a delirious round of celebrations at Liberty Stadium.

So what’s Clement doing differently than ill-fated Francesco Guidolin and Bob Bradley before him? The manager differs from most midseason replacements in that he’s been coaching the team as if he arrived in the summer. He used the transfer window to add new blood to the team in Olsson and Tom Carroll, two players who have given the team a defensive bite and offensive spark they previously lacked. He’s also given his best players license to do what they do best. Llorente has been trusted to score goals by himself up top, which he’s done, and Sigurðsson has been set free in attacking midfield, tasked with doing whatever he can to pick defenses apart and create chances for his teammates and himself.

Most importantly, Clement’s Swansea City aren’t just looking to grind out points, they’re going for wins. Relegation-battle regulars such as Sunderland typically are concerned mainly with getting any point they can, be it from a draw or late win. But the Swans are going for broke every game. This approach has led to 4-0 and 3-1 losses to Arsenal and Chelsea. They also smashed Liverpool 3-2 and did the same to Burnley this weekend. Clement’s stance seems to be if his team is in danger of going down, it might as well go down fighting.

Swansea are 16th in the table, separated from 14th only because of goal difference, and there are five points separating them from 18th and the drop zone. The idea of the Swans reaching safety, let alone having a five-point cushion, was unimaginable when Clement took over. And having played four of the league’s top six, things are actually looking pretty good in the Welsh city. — B.H.

Arsenal’s season goes from bizzare to absurd

Arsenal’s descent into lunacy began half an hour before their game against Liverpool on Saturday when news broke that star striker Alexis Sanchez was starting the game on the bench. According to manager Arsene Wenger, he dropped Sanchez because he wanted a “more direction option in the game.” Wenger’s explanation made little sense, seeing as Sanchez’s greatest strength is he runs straight at defenses and destroys them, and it made even less sense when reports later surfaced that the star striker had gotten into an argument with his teammates in the week before the game and stormed out of practice.

The confusion surrounding Arsenal’s best player did nothing to help the team. Arsenal always allow good teams to play to their best football and, shorn of both Sanchez and Mesut Ozil, who was out with the flu, that is exactly what happened against Liverpool. The Reds, who have been a mess in 2017, all of a sudden found their groove and ran away with an easy 3-1 win. Arsenal’s only goal came shortly after halftime when Sanchez was introduced, promptly took control of the Gunners offense, and laid on a delicious through ball for Danny Welbeck to dink over Simon Mignolet.

The result leaves Arsenal’s season in a shambles. They sit fifth in the Premier League table and are about to get knocked out of the Champions League by Bayern Munich, who hold a 5-1 lead heading into the second leg of their knockout round tie on Tuesday. Worse still, Sanchez and Ozil’s contracts expire in the summer of 2018, and both players are stalling on signing new deals. With just 12 months on their contracts, bigger clubs such as PSG, Juventus, and Bayern will try to pry them away during the summer transfer window. Wenger could follow them out the door. His deal runs out in a few months, and he is yet again taking the liberty of letting his contract expire before deciding if he wants to sign a new one.

Suffice it to say, the future of the fifth-most valuable soccer team in the world is not rosy. — M.B.

Goal of the Week

For the first time in forever, Tottenham look like they aren’t going to fall apart during the stretch run. Though much credit needs to be given to manager Mauricio Pochettino, star striker Harry Kane is the on-the-field reason why Spurs look so good. The England star holds up the ball well, is a fantastic finisher and has lethal range, as he proved against Everton on Sunday.

WTF of the Week

Zlatan Ibrahimovic had quite the weekend. Manchester United’s top scorer could have won his team’s game against Bournemouth from the penalty spot, but was thwarted by Artur Boruc. Way before the penalty, however, Ibrahimovic got into a wrestling match with Bournemouth defender Tyrone Mings, was thrown to the ground by Bournemouth’s captain, Andrew Surman, got stamped in the face by Mings then blatantly elbowed Mings when the pair challenged for a header. Ibrahimovic’s explanation for the elbow? Mings’ “jumped into my elbow.” It comes as no surprise that the FA took action Monday morning and charged both Mings and Ibrahimovic with violent conduct, which likely will include at least a three-game ban.

Post’s Premier League Rankings

Liverpool easily deal with another upper-crust opponent, Manchester United’s dreams of a Champions League berth are dealt a grave blow and Crystal Palace may have started to figure it out.

1. Chelsea (1)*

2. Tottenham (2)

3. Manchester City (3)

4. Liverpool (6)

5. Manchester United (4)

6. Arsenal (5)

7. Everton (7)

8. Southampton (10)

9. West Ham (9)*

10. West Brom (8)

11. Stoke (12)

12. Burnley (11)

13. Watford (13)

14. Leicester (14)

15. Swansea City (16)

16. Bournemouth (15)

17. Crystal Palace (17)

18. Middlesbrough (18)

19. Hull City (19)

20. Sunderland (20)

*Play on Monday