Here’s Ben Fisher’s report.
Bournemouth looked in big trouble when Jamie Vardy scored only for a series of Leicester errors to hand Eddie Howe’s team a thumping victory
Sun 12 Jul 2020 16.14 EDT
First published on Sun 12 Jul 2020 13.00 EDT- Full-time: Bournemouth 4-1 Leicester
- Goal! Bournemouth 4-1 Leicester (Solanke, 87)
- Goal! Bournemouth 3-1 Leicester (Evans OG, 83)
- Red card! Soyuncu (68)
- Goal! Bournemouth 2-1 Leicester (Solanke, 68)
- Goal! Bournemouth 1-1 Leicester (Stanislas, 66 pen)
- Penalty to Bournemouth!
- Half-time: Bournemouth 0-1 Leicester
- Goal! Bournemouth 0-1 Leicester (Vardy, 24)
- The teams
- Preamble
Live feed
- Full-time: Bournemouth 4-1 Leicester
- Goal! Bournemouth 4-1 Leicester (Solanke, 87)
- Goal! Bournemouth 3-1 Leicester (Evans OG, 83)
- Red card! Soyuncu (68)
- Goal! Bournemouth 2-1 Leicester (Solanke, 68)
- Goal! Bournemouth 1-1 Leicester (Stanislas, 66 pen)
- Penalty to Bournemouth!
- Half-time: Bournemouth 0-1 Leicester
- Goal! Bournemouth 0-1 Leicester (Vardy, 24)
- The teams
- Preamble
Dominic Solanke speaks.
All the boys are over the moon. We knew the last few weeks have been difficult. Today we went all out. I am just happy [the goals] came now. Today the boys were on fire. Once you get a goal youget a lot of adrenbaime. I got two good chances. And I managed to put them away. We didn’t have anything to lose. We went a bit more attacking. And it worked.
Timely.
Bournemouth are three points off West Ham and Watford at the bottom. Leicester may drop out of the top four for the first time since September if Manchester United beat Southampton tomorrow night. All eyes on Switzerland, Manchester City and CAS for them. That table is hotting up. Project Restart was a good idea after all?
Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Liverpool | 35 | 49 | 93 |
2 | Man City | 35 | 57 | 72 |
3 | Chelsea | 35 | 14 | 60 |
4 | Leicester | 35 | 29 | 59 |
5 | Man Utd | 34 | 26 | 58 |
6 | Wolverhampton | 35 | 11 | 55 |
7 | Sheff Utd | 35 | 5 | 54 |
8 | Tottenham Hotspur | 35 | 9 | 52 |
9 | Arsenal | 35 | 7 | 50 |
10 | Burnley | 35 | -8 | 50 |
11 | Everton | 35 | -11 | 45 |
12 | Southampton | 34 | -13 | 44 |
13 | Newcastle | 35 | -16 | 43 |
14 | Crystal Palace | 35 | -15 | 42 |
15 | Brighton | 35 | -16 | 36 |
16 | West Ham | 35 | -15 | 34 |
17 | Watford | 35 | -21 | 34 |
18 | AFC Bournemouth | 35 | -24 | 31 |
19 | Aston Villa | 35 | -27 | 30 |
20 | Norwich | 35 | -41 | 21 |
Stephen Carr - that Stephen Carr? - has this to say: “This is another example of Brendan Rodgers’ inability to set his team up mentally. So fragile.”
Peter Oh, well done: “Is this turning into the Bournemouth Supremacy?!”
Full-time: Bournemouth 4-1 Leicester
Bournemouth were hopeless and hapless in the first half but their ineptitude was no match for Leicester’s second-half collapse, featuring horrible defending, a lack of energy and a loss of discipline through Soyoncu, and that came *after* a goal. Credit to Bournemouth, though. They fight on.
90+5 min: What the devil has happened to Leicester?
90+4 min: Close again! The more likely scorer looks Bournemouth. Kasper Schmeichel almost got caught out with another silly pass. And Sam Surridge steals in past a sleeping Evans to hit the post.
90+2 min: Since Bournemouth equalised, it is difficult to recall a single Leicester attack. They have a raft of good attacking players who have been watching their defence fall apart.
90 min: Six minutes of added time.
89 min: This has been one of the oddest matches in memory. Each of the five goals has resulted from utterly hilarious defending. A final Bournemouth change? Off comes Callum Wilson, and on comes Sam Surridge.
Goal! Bournemouth 4-1 Leicester (Solanke, 87)
Again, that was laid on a plate for him by Leicester. They made a mess of a throw and the newly prolific Solanke stole and in and placed it past Schmeichel.
87 min: Junior Stanislas booked for timewasting. He needn’t have bothered. Leicester have got nothing here.
85 min: Leicester’s collapse has been amazing. We thought Bournemouth looked woebegone in the first half but they have fallen apart completely. Evans was unlucky for the goal - which he has been credited with - but he and his teammates have been playing like a drain.
Goal! Bournemouth 3-1 Leicester (Evans OG, 83)
That may be an Evans own-goal. In fact, it was. Stanislas cut in from the wing and his shot comes off Evans and Schmeichel is unsighted.
82 min: Leicester try and get back into this. Losing a man seems to have thrown them completely.
81 min: Lewis Cook replaces Brooks, and will try and bolster midfield with his hard work.
80 min: Schmeichel partially redeems himself by being quick to recognise the danger of a Brooks ball. Brooks has been excellent, but it’s time for him to come off. There are shades of Darren Anderton from him, in more ways than one.
79 min: Billing continues to be in the wars. He wins a free-kick and then his team-mates will take their time over taking it. Leicester can’t find a foothold back in this game.
77 min: Some good pressing by Bournemouth has Leicester scrabbling back. This is a complete reversal of what came before. David Brooks bamboozles Christian Fuchs, but then looks a little tired. He’s doing stretches. Bournemouth will need him if they are to stay up.
75 min: Since all that kerfuffle, this game has been somewhat shapeless. Both teams look shocked by what went on there. Now, do Bournemouth try and sit on it?
73 min: Well done, Dom.
72 min: While Leicester are responsible, Bournemouth got back in because Eddie Howe made positive changes and as he has always done. Maybe he’s not lost it just yet. It’s Brendan Rodgers’ turn to look nonplussed.
70 min: That was, frankly, bonkers. What a five minutes that was. And suddenly West Ham and Watford don’t feel so nearly so calm as they did. Soyuncu lost his head while Kasper Schmeichel has dropped a pair of ricks. Leicester’s woes are great news for Chelsea and Manchester United.
Red card! Soyuncu (68)
Referee Stuart Attwell has sent off Soyuncu for lashing out in frustration as Callum Wilson crowded him while that goal was going in. Wow wow wow!
Goal! Bournemouth 2-1 Leicester (Solanke, 68)
What’s this? More Leicester chaos. Solanke presented with the chance to score, and he did so. Wow!
67 min. Well well. Well. Well indeed. Leicester went to sleep there, completely. Credit to Callum Wilson and Stanislas for keeping calm.
Goal! Bournemouth 1-1 Leicester (Stanislas, 66 pen)
Stanislas sends Schmeichel the wrong way. Somehow, Bournemouth are back in this.
Penalty to Bournemouth!
Schmeichel’s clearance went straight to Callum Wilson and he’s brought down by Ndidi. Only a yellow card for the Nigerian.
63 min: Perez carves out some space and then Tielemans has a shot blocked. Leicester not quite as vigorous as they were in the first half.
61 min: The ball is pinged in by Stanislas and Evans does well to beat Solanke to the it. It’s all a bit hopeful from Bournemouth.
59 min: Free-kick for Bournemouth and they should have scored. Leicester couldn’t get it away. The ball span across goal and Callum Wilson was too slow to the chance. He just didn’t smell it.
57 min: Eddie Howe is deep in conversation with right-hand man Jason Tindall. Both of their faces betray anxiety. Billing meanwhile, has taken a blow to the sternum from Ryan Bennett. He’ll be OK, if winded.
55 min: More belated subs news: Junior Stanislas is on for Danjuma. It looks like Gosling and Danjuma paid for their part in that Vardy goal. Paul Sheppard is back for more: “You’d look crestfallen if you were replaced by Billing. I hope he makes me eat my words...”
52 min: Perez is released by Vardy to fire in a shot that warms the hands of Ramsdale.
51 min: Apologies, this Leicester change was missed. Iheanacho had been ok, too, so maybe that’s an injury.
49 min: Bournemouth haven’t exactly gone for the b of the bang here. In fact, Leicester look just as comfortable as before...but here’s Brooks. Good ball that Wilson should have done better with.
47 min: Dan Gosling is gone, replaced at half-time by Philip Billing. Up in the stands, Gosling looks not a little crestfallen.
46 min: Off back we go. 45 minutes to save Eddie Howe and Bournemouth.
It’s...Jamie Vardy.
Peter Oh is here too. “With Villa winning today and time running out, you might call this home match the Bournemouth Ultimatum.”
Think they missed the memo.
Justin Kavanagh has it right: “Bournemouth look about as organized as eleven toddlers having a kickabout with a beachball on a summer’s evening. What has happened to Eddie Howe’s men?“
JR in Illinois calls in: “I’m going to be watching the second half from behind my couch with my hands over my eyes just peeking between my fingers and I’m not even a Bournemouth fan. I’m scared for them.”
Paul Sheppard, Bournemouth fan, has his say: “As a Cherries fan I have to agree that something is very much awry and has been for some time. The goal was obviously farcical and Leiscester are negating the Brooks threat by doubling up on him but the Danjuma pass to Vardy was more symptomatic of the problems. He did not seem overly concerned by his catastrophic error that has put our best player out of the game and more worryingly none of his team mates bollocked him for the mistake. There you have our season in a nutshell.”
Half-time: Bournemouth 0-1 Leicester
It cannot be long until the last rites are read on Bournemouth judging by that half. Leicester pounced as Dan Gosling began a run of errors and it was Vardy who scored. This would be a good win for Leicester. Should they find a next goal soon then Bournemouth’s fate is all but sealed.
45+4 min: It’s all Leicester in this time added on. Just as it has been for most of the half.
45+3 min: Justin forces a corner off Rico. Tielemans takes and Lerna heads away. Justin’s cross comes in and it forces Ramsdale to palm behind. The next corner comes short to Fuchs and then Vardy was queuing up. It’s deflected behind.
45 min: There will be five minutes of time added on. Five minutes in which Eddie Howe must compose himself....ah, here’s his team at last. Brooks cuts and fires a shot that Schmeichel saves well. That was Bournemouth’s best moment of the half. Not that there’s been a high level of competition.
44 min: Gosling at least looks up for it, though he has already been booked. The rest of Bournemouth’s midfield has been a void.
42 min: Brooks shows off his skills but is crowded out. Leicester just seem to want it more. Brooks had nobody backing him up. This is a shame.
40 min: Ake goes off. And that looked bad. On comes Steve Cook. This has been a dismal night so far for Bournemouth. For Leicester, Ndidi tries a volley. He is no Mark Hughes and it flies high and behind.
38 min: More chaos from Bournemouth, and costly perhaps too. Nathan Ake has to clear the danger as Danjuma gives the ball away and the Dutchman comes back to stop a Jamie Vardy shot. Ake is down. If he’s out, then it’s probably curtains. He looks to have hurt his groin. And that looks a season-ender.
36 min: A promising move for Leicester, a swift interchange, breaks down when Justin cannot beat the first man with his ball into the centre.
33 min: Slightly better from Bournemouth as Solanke gets a cross in as Wilson clears the ball. It was, though, very slow. And the vigour is shown in stark relief by how hard Vardy and Iheanacho work to close down their opposing defenders in possession.
32 min: Dan Gosling now booked for a loose foul in midfield. It has not been a happy first half for him.
30 min: The ball is looped forwards by Bournemouth and Jonny Evans, with nobody near him, sweeps up with ease. Eventually, Iheanancho has another shot. He clearly fancies getting one.
28 min: Iheanacho has a shot on goal. Leicester beginning to queue up here. This could get ugly for Bournemouth.
27 min: As if Gosling’s evening could get any worse he takes rap to the head. He’s OK to continue but clearly in some discomfort, now physically as well as mentally.