Howe’s that for a great escape?
10-man Cherries out of drop zone
IF BOURNEMOUTH can replicate such a gritty, determined display as this for the rest of the season they have every chance of staying up.
Against such opposition, too, this felt huge for Eddie Howe. A second consecutive Premier League win — the first time they have managed t hat s i nce September — was achieved despite having to play nearly the entire second half with 10 players after Jefferson Lerma was sent off.
This was a blend of intelligent attacking play and a die-hard spirit that for the last 20 minutes, after Villa halved the deficit, helped them reach the finishing line with three points that lift them out of the bottom three. Villa also managed to finish the afternoon out of the relegation zone thanks to Brighton’s late equaliser at West Ham.
For Dean Smith and Villa, well, this certainly highlighted their flaws. It yet again proved just how much they rely on Jack Grealish. The Villa captain was a creative spark and a nuisance, as Lerma found out.
But football is not a sport for i ndividuals and Bournemouth demonstrated what can happen when everyone pulls together.
‘We have shown we are still alive and kicking and we have points to prove, Howe said. ‘We have a long, long way to go before we can say we have done anything.
‘There are some tough games to come, nothing is decided today. It’s just we are in there fighting and showing we want to be in the Premier League.’
Villa, perhaps a little sluggish after their Carabao Cup semi-final triumph over Leicester, struggled to find an early rhythm.
Grealish also took a while to get up to speed but when he did Lerma, for one, could not cope. He clipped Grealish after the Villa captain knocked the ball beyond him in the Bournemouth half. He received his 10th yellow card of the season (no player has had more this season) and his 11th eventually came.
That booking set the tone for what became a scrappy affair but Bournmeouth did not change their approach. Ryan Fraser and Harry Wilson targeted Villa from the flanks but their hard work was not rewarded — in particular by Dan Gosling who shot over from six yards. Not long after, Mbwana Samatta, whom Villa signed for £8.5million from Belgian side Genk, forced Simon Francis to go to ground and block his shot which looked destined to creep into Aaron Ramsdale’s goal from a tight angle.
Bournemouth’ s response was positive and Francis, after being Bournemouth’s last line of defence, became their chief creator when he sent an inswinging ball into Villa’s box from the right.
Gosling headed down to Phil Billing and the midfielder struck the ball crisply into the bottom corner. It got even better for them seven minutes later.
Bournemouth won a free-kick on the edge of the Villa box. Harry Wilson’s initial effort crashed into the wall and when Tyrone Mings only half cleared, Ryan Fraser shot through the crowd. Pepe Reina made an instinctive save down to his left but could only parry as far as Nathan Ake who blasted the rebound into an open net and once the VAR at Stockley Park was satisfied that Ake had not strayed offside, referee Anthony Taylor awarded the goal.
The ripple of relief around the s t adium was cl ear: a s econd consecutive league win was within sight. But this is Bournemouth and this season has shown more than any of their other four campaigns in the top flight that they are likely to face difficulty at some point in a match.
That came when Lerma left his side a man down for the majority of the second half. Grealish again tried to get past him but Lerma held him l ong enough for the referee to award a second yellow. Yes, it was soft, but it was also daft from Lerma.
With 20 minutes left, Bournemouth had that all too familiar sinking feeling. When Keinan Davis’ shot rebounded up and into the air, Samatta reacted quickest to loop a header over Ramsdale for the Tanzania international’s first goal in English football.
For the next 20 minutes, Villa made Bournemouth work but, with Ake organising his defence effectively, the Cherries held on for possibly their most important win of the campaign.
Frustration, then, for Smith. ‘A few decisions cost us in the end,’ he said. ‘We weren’t good enough and when we won the ball we did not keep it well enough.’