Premier League: Bournemouth 2 Manchester City 1
Pep Guardiola admitted Manchester City “couldn’t handle” Bournemouth as his injury-hit side lost 2-1 at the Vitality Stadium to see their unbeaten run in the Premier League ended after 32 games.
The champions were without key players, and in the absence of John Stones and Ruben Dias fielded a makeshift defence into which Bournemouth ripped with a fearless attacking display, capped by goals from Antoine Semenyo and Evanilson to beat City in the league for the first time.
Josko Gvardiol, one of a number of players to feature despite having been a doubt pre-match, scored with a late header to set up a frantic finish, but it could not preserve City’s run as they slipped behind Liverpool at the top of the table.
Of particular concern will have been the ease with which Bournemouth’s attack, led by the excellent Semenyo and Justin Kluivert, tormented Nathan Ake and Manuel Akanji, neither of whom were at full fitness.
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“Ruben will be out until the international break,” said Guardiola. “Manu and Nathan made an incredible effort to be there in a demanding game, Kyle [Walker] as well, 18 or 19 days without one training session.
“Rico [Lewis] has had a lot of minutes and was tired as well, so this is the position that we have, we try to handle the minutes. But we couldn’t handle it. They were another pace today and we could not handle it.”
The champions were also without Kevin De Bruyne and Jeremy Doku, fit enough only for the bench, and at times were overrun. Milos Kerkez made the opening goal, dashing round the outside of Phil Foden on the left and cutting it back centrally for Semenyo to turn Gvardiol and angle a finish wide of Ederson.
Ake in particular found the speed and direct running of the Bournemouth attack nearly impossible to contain and City were breached again midway through the second half, Kerkez racing clear and crossing to where Ake and Gvardiol had abandoned Evanilson, giving the Brazilian room to pick out the finish.
“Sometimes we have to accept that the opponents make a type of game,” said Guardiola. “Sometimes you handle it and sometimes you struggle a little bit. Today it happened.
“[The players] make an incredible effort. They are players that are not in the best way and they made an incredible effort to be here.
“Manu and Nathan were not in good condition. Until the last moment I didn’t know Nathan could play, he said I want to try.
“During the season sometimes, this kind of thing happens more than during other seasons. We have to handle it. People will come back and sooner or later the team will be back.”
Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola, whose team climbed to eighth having taken seven points from their last three games against City, Aston Villa and Arsenal, reflected on a fearless display from his players.
“We had to feel the pressure and it was tight at the end,” he said. “I’m very pleased. One thing is to beat City but another is to play better.
“We played with no fear, tried to press when we could and defend when we had to.
“It was dangerous in the last 10 minutes. You don’t enjoy that at all. There was so much pressure.”
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Not since losing to Aston Villa on December 6th last year had City lost in the league, but from the first moments on the south coast Andoni Iraola’s side looked a match for them, their energy and industry rewarded by goals from Antoine Semenyo and Evanilson.
It looked at times like Bournemouth would run away from City. Marcus Tavernier struck a post at 2-0 to leave Pep Guardiola’s side clinging on by their fingertips, before Josko Gvardiol set up a nervous finish when he headed in Ilkay Gündogan’s cross.
Guardiola had told his players they would need to play through the pain during his team’s injury troubles and so there were starts for Gvardiol, Kyle Walker and Manuel Akanji, all of whom had been doubts. Kevin De Bruyne was fit enough only for the bench where he was flanked by three teenagers without a Premier League appearance between them.
Absent from the squad entirely were John Stones and Ruben Dias, and how City could have used their central defensive pair during a first 20 minutes in which Bournemouth attacked fearlessly.
A goal seemingly beckoned after a minute when first Semenyo then Justin Kluivert were kept out by Ederson, City’s goalkeeper recovering from a loose parry to produce a brilliant second stop.
It was a warning the champions failed to heed and on nine minutes they fell behind. Milos Kerkez made it, dashing round the outside of Phil Foden on the left and cutting it back centrally where Semenyo, having trodden on the ball in his haste to shoot, recovered to turn Gvardiol and angle a finish wide of Ederson and in.
Kerkez produced an outstanding block-tackle on Bernardo Silva to preserve the lead then Erling Haaland dragged City’s best chance of the first half wide.
City had barely troubled Irish goalkeeper Mark Travers in the Bournemouth goal and whatever fitness concerns Guardiola had fretted over before kick-off were shown to be substantial.
The second half almost began spectacularly, Ederson doing well to turn away Evanilson’s strike with his leg before City came close to levelling through Foden who guided wide from Matheus Nunes’s pullback.
Lewis Cook was perhaps fortunate to escape without punishment for a challenge that carried him right through Haaland, who was left requiring treatment, to City’s irritation.
Semenyo and Kluivert were a constant threat to the visitors’ makeshift backline. Nathan Ake, in particular, found the speed and direct running of the Bournemouth pair nearly impossible to contain, and their link-up play nearly brought a second goal, Semenyo’s strike deflected narrowly over from a rapid break.
Again City had been warned and again Bournemouth repeated the trick to breach them. The outstanding Kerkez was the architect, rocketing clear of Walker down the left and crossing to where Ake and Gvardiol had abandoned Evanilson in the middle, giving the Brazilian room to pick his corner and finish across Ederson.
Tavernier fired against the inside of the post as Bournemouth threatened to sweep City’s unbeaten record away before their eyes.
Travers got down well to keep out and cling to Haaland’s volley as the prospect of defeat inched towards reality.
Gvardiol’s header offered late hope the run might go on, and it might have had Travers not beaten Haaland’s effort off the line in stoppage time.
Foden then fired inches wide with the final kick as Bournemouth held on.
