I CAN’T WATCH

Cruel defeat by Saints leaves Howe praying for Watford slip-ups

SHATTERED Eddie Howe does not know if he can face watching Watford’s clash with Manchester City tomorrow night.

The Hornets need only a point to send Howe’s helpless team down at Vicarage Road.

And the Bournemouth boss (right) said: “I don’t know what I will do. There are so many emotions running through my body right now that I don’t know what I will be doing in an hour’s

FOOTBALL can be a very cruel game indeed. When you are scrapping for every last point, Lady Luck rarely smiles.

Of course, it had to be former Bournemouth youngster Danny Ings who plunged the knife into his former side yesterday at a drizzly, grey Vitality Stadium.

And of course VAR, in the fifth minute of injury time, had to rule out a Sam Surridge ‘equaliser’. A point that might yet have made so much difference to the Cherries’ season.

And yes, of course, as they desperately pushed for that equaliser, Southampton had to break away a minute later to grab their second goal through Che Adams.

A cruel, cruel world. Now Bournemouth, after such a bold fight, are clinging to their Premier League life by the most slender of threads. Even a point earned by Watford at home to Manchester City tomorrow night will send the Cherries down and end the great adventure after five wonderful years.

But the reality is that Eddie Howe’s men, still three points from safety but with only three now to play for, are almost certainly gone. And, in truth, they were, once again, not quite good enough. They ran up missed a penalty – and a Saints defence who were just too strong.

Cherries manager Howe admitted before the game the season has driven him mad. This match will not have helped.

Howe handed a 17-yearold lngs, who had been struggling with injury, a three-year contract in the summer of 2010, then gave him his first-team debut, later taking him to Burnley in a £1million deal.

This Ings is now a very different player, having shrugged off his injury problems. And he proved it once again.

The Cherries had chances, as Lloyd Kelly saw his low shot defected just wide and Callum Wilson headed over.

Southampton, though, with five games unbeaten under their belts, are a confident side and Cherries keeper Aaron Ramsdale had to dash out smartly to save at the feet of Nathan Redmond. Then James Ward-prowse headed straight at Ramsdale.

The warning signs were there. Ings had done very little up until four minutes before halftime. But then

Wardprowse whipped the ball across the face of the

Bournemouth area. Redmond touched it on and Ings had plenty to do, with two defenders in front of him.

But a skip sideways left them floundering. The ball was on his right foot, and then it was nestling in the corner of the net.

It was an ominous moment. Howe made changes and the Cherries piled on the pressure.

But Ralph Hasenhuttl’s Saints kept breaking with menace, as Ramsdale tipped Ward-prowse’s drive wide. Then Harry Wilson handled in the area.

Ings stepped up to take the spot-kick but Ramsdale saved. He did even better to foil Redmond when he broke through soon after.

As the chances came and went, Callum Wilson glanced just wide and Alex Mccarthy saved superbly.

Then, when Mccarthy fumbled from Kelly’s throw, Surridge thought he had given them a lifeline. VAR said no.

And then Adams made certain of it all as he rattled in Michael Obafemi’s pass. Heartbreaking for Howe and his sinking Cherries.

NIGHTMARE Defeat at home to Southampton has made it tough for Bournemouth to avoid the drop

TORMENT Sam Surridge had a goal ruled out and his side suffered

time, let alone on Tuesday night. I feel for my players. They gave everything. We had to win, but now there is a feeling that it slipped away from us.” Sam Surridge thought he had levelled late on for the Cherries only for VAR to rule it out. Che Adams then doubled the lead Danny Ings had given Southampton in the first half. Howe (above) added: “It looked like all our hard work had been rewarded at the end, but VAR ruled against us. It is such a cruel thing. It feels like we have been on the wrong end of a few of those calls. “It is out of our hands now, and it is a horrible feeling. I can’t lie – it is very, very painful. This is going to be a very tense week.” The Cherries (striker Callum Wilson, above) will hope Watford lose their final two games by enough of a margin to flip the goal difference – and that they can win at Everton next weekend. WIPE OUT Steve Cook knows Bournemouth need a miracle to stay up