Howe stirs troops to boost survival hopes
points from two games against fellow relegation contenders and hope returns to Bournemouth. Eddie Howe’s famously streaky side have found their form at last and this victory over Aston Villa, despite playing for most of the second half with 10 men, was one that required genuine resilience.
Philip Billing and Nathan Ake were the names on the scoresheet, but these three points owed just as much to Bournemouth’s collective defensive efforts in the second half, when Jack Grealish and his support act pushed hard for an equaliser.
Jefferson Lerma’s red card, for two fouls on Grealish, changed the dynamic as Bournemouth were strolling.
Howe’s side played with a sense of spirited injustice in the moments that followed, conceding once — to Premier League debutant Mbwana Samatta — but then clinging on as Dean Smith’s side applied pressure.
“We are staying up,” roared the home crowd at the final whistle, which Howe greeted with a series of relieved fist pumps. The win, following their recent victory over Brighton, moved Bournemouth two points clear of the relegation zone and one place above 17th-placed Villa.
“The passion we showed has to be a more consistent thing,” said Howe. “When we show that side, the work rate passion and belief, we are a different team.”
Billing’s strike, a firm finish inside Pepe Reina’s far post, was the least Bournemouth deserved in the first half. The second arrived when Ake slammed his finish past Reina after the goalkeeper had failed to hold Ryan Fraser’s shot.
As ever, Villa’s attacking play was funnelled almost entirely through Grealish, who came close on three occasions in the first half. His dribbling also brought about the most predictable yellow card of the Premier League season, as Lerma hacked down the Villa captain.
It was Lerma’s 10th yellow of the season, more than anyone else, and the 11th followed a few minutes after halftime when he blocked Grealish.
Villa soon took control against the 10 men. Samatta pulled one back by stealing in front of goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale. They could not find the breakthrough, though.
“We were not good enough on the ball,” said Smith, who railed against a series of refereeing decisions.