Bournemouth vs Manchester City Review
Bournemouth broke a streak of 14 consecutive defeats against Manchester City in the Premier League, securing a 2-1 victory at the Vitality Stadium. This marked their first-ever win against City in the league and caused the visitors to lose their top position in the standings. Although Manchester City had been unbeaten in their last 32 league matches before this game, they had not been performing at their best recently.
Their weaknesses were quickly exposed when Milos Kerkez set up Antoine Semenyo in the box within the first 10 minutes, Semenyo controlled the ball and skillfully placed it in the bottom corner to give Bournemouth the lead. City appeared stunned and took time to find their rhythm after conceding, however they were struggling to create chances. The Cherries weren’t posing a threat for a second goal, but City was far from equalizing. Remarkably, Guardiola’s team went into halftime without registering a single shot on target, and with Erling Haaland seemingly nursing an injury, the situation looked grim for the champions.
As the hour mark approached, City still hadn’t tested Mark Travers, and Phil Foden squandered a great opportunity to level the score by shooting wide after some clever play from Matheus Nunes. That missed chance proved costly shortly after, as Kerkez provided another assist, delivering a perfect cross from deep for Evanilson, who scored his second goal in as many matches. Bournemouth continued to press and nearly added a third just moments later when Marcus Tavernier’s powerful left-footed shot hit the post, and somehow, with an open net in front of him, Adam Smith sent the rebound soaring over the bar.
City finally came to life with just 10 minutes remaining when Joško Gvardiol soared above everyone to head in İlkay Gündoğan’s enticing cross, creating a thrilling conclusion. As the match neared its end, City applied relentless pressure on the Bournemouth goal, but they were unable to find a way through. The Cherries held on through six minutes of added time to achieve a remarkable win, shifting the title momentum in favor of Liverpool.
