Bournemouth - Nottingham Forest 1-1
AFC Bournemouth dropped into the Premier League relegation zone following a 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest at the Vitality Stadium. The result leaves the Cherries without a victory in seven matches across all competitions.
Hoping to continue their recent PL resurgence after putting a morale-boosting three-match unbeaten run together in recent weeks, Nottingham Forest began assertively as Neto produced a sublime save to deny Morgan Gibbs-White. Bournemouth were indebted to VAR on the stroke of the quarter-hour mark when Ryan Yates was denied the game’s opening goal after Wilfried Bony had strayed marginally offside in the build-up.
However, with the footballing gods on their side, Bournemouth were celebrating in the 28th minute with new £20-million man Dango Ouattara playing a significant part in the goal. With regular strike-partner Dominic Solanke absent due to a jarred knee, Jaidon Anthony stepped up to the plate for Gary O’Neil’s relegation-threatened side with a clinical strike past the returning Wayne Hennessey into the far corner to give the Cherries’ the lead heading into HT.
On course to register their first league victory since the middle of November, Bournemouth were inches away from doubling their lead, only for Renan Lodi’s last-ditch interception to deny Ouattara from opening his goalscoring account for his new employers. In pursuit of a late share of the spoils, Steve Cooper introduced a hat-trick of alterations for the final 10 minutes and was rewarded for his gamble. Previously without a PL goal to his name this season, Sam Surridge survived a possible intervention from VAR to set up an intriguing conclusion.
However, that was to be the last notable action of the game as a point apiece leaves Bournemouth staring an immediate return to the Championship in the face. Meanwhile, despite being denied a third successive PL win, Nottingham Forest remain on an upwards trajectory away from the bottom three.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Dango Ouattara (AFC Bournemouth)
See stats from the match at Flashcore
Leicester - Brighton 2-2
Brighton & Hove Albion climbed into the Premier League top-six after Evan Ferguson’s late equaliser secured a 2-2 draw with Leicester City at the King Power Stadium.
The Foxes headed into this clash with high-flying Brighton without a win in their past four league outings, leaving under-fire boss Brendan Rodgers searching for solutions. After a low-key opening to the contest, which saw the visitors dominate possession from the outset, Roberto De Zerbi’s men took the lead when Kaoru Mitoma, scoring his fourth league goal of the campaign, curled in a sensational strike from the edge of the area into the top corner after cutting in from the left-hand side.
Not long after the opening goal had hit the back of the net, both teams were forced into early changes because of injury. Adam Lallana was replaced by Joël Veltman for the visitors, while Marc Albrighton took Dennis Praet’s place for Leicester. Although the alteration was unplanned for Rodgers’ side, it soon paid dividends when Albrighton hammered home a rebounded effort from close range to net the Foxes equaliser moments after coming onto the field.
It was all to play for after the interval, but it was Brighton who continued to be in command of the ball after emerging from the tunnel for the second half. While trying to break through the Leicester defence, Danny Welbeck saw his penalty appeal waved away after going down inside the area. Down at the other end of the field, the hosts took advantage and completed their turnaround through Harvey Barnes, who was in the right place at the right time to fire in Luke Thomas’ flick on from a corner, much to the relief of the home supporters.
Rodgers was able to welcome James Maddison back from the bench, with the England international returning to action following a spell on the sidelines. It was another positive moment for the Foxes, but they now needed to cross the finishing line to make sure they took home the spoils. Brighton pressure mounted and eventually told as they rescued a point through Ferguson, who made sure the Seagulls extended their unbeaten PL run to three games with an 88th minute header to break Leicester hearts.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Pervis Estupiñán (Brighton & Hove Albion)
See stats from the match at Flashscore
Southampton - Aston Villa 0-1
Aston Villa heaped further misery on relegation-threatened Southampton with a 1-0 victory at St. Mary’s Stadium, extending the hosts’ losing home streak to four games on the trot.
An unexpected three-game winning streak, including a 2-0 win over Manchester City, gave relegation contenders Southampton enough of a boost to push the visitors on the back foot in the opening minutes. The Saints’ dominant opening almost gave them the lead midway through the half, though Kyle Walker-Peters was adjudged offside in the build-up much to the disappointment of the home faithful.
Villa raised their game however, and came close twice in the same run of play, only to see Jacob Ramsey sky his shot after Ollie Watkins forced Gavin Bazunu into a superb save. Fans were then taken by surprise when the game was suspended after a drone was caught flying over St. Mary’s Stadium, forcing officials to direct players off the pitch. However, it resumed less than 10 minutes later as the handful of remaining first-half minutes played out before both teams headed back inside without tasting the opener.
Following a scrappy start to the second period in a bid to draw first blood, a moment of drama materialised in the 65th minute when the home side were once again left begging for more. James Ward-Prowse’s deflected effort, which found the back of the net, was ruled out after a VAR review that noticed a foul in the build-up. However, just when some thought the game would be heading for a draw, Watkins came through with a brilliant header 10 minutes before FT, which Bazunu was unable to keep out following a perfect free-kick delivery. Ultimately, Nathan Jones’ outfit looked visibly shaken and were unable to carve spaces through the lines in a tense finale.
Villa register their first away H2H win since January 2021, as they continue their ascent up the table with a third unbeaten league game. While the Saints will rue their missed efforts, which could have seen them avoid a first defeat in four competitive matches. They sit in the same position at the same stage of the 2004/05 campaign, when they eventually suffered their only Premier League relegation.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Jacob Ramsey (Aston Villa)
See stats from the match at Flashscore
West Ham - Everton 2-0
West Ham United ended a run of seven Premier League matches without a win, defeating fellow strugglers Everton to climb out of the relegation zone.
Given the current predicament in which both sides find themselves, a rather tepid start to proceedings was hardly surprising. Everton dominated early possession without troubling Łukasz Fabiański, before Lucas Paquetá forced Jordan Pickford into a one-handed save, which seemed to tip the balance of play in West Ham’s favour.
With 34 minutes played, Jarrod Bowen was first to react to a loose ball, keeping himself marginally onside to put his side ahead. Michail Antonio then wasted a free header, but quickly made amends, showing persistence to set up Bowen for his fourth PL strike of the campaign - doubling his tally in under 10 minutes. Ahead of kick-off, no other PL side had scored fewer first-half goals than West Ham or Everton (6), and after striking the post via Alex Iwobi’s deflected effort, Everton maintained that dubious record heading into the break.
Energised, the Hammers looked to put the game to bed, hitting the crossbar through Emerson Palmieri after a lung-busting run. With time ticking away, Frank Lampard’s side desperately needed to turn their possession into something tangible, but it was the hosts who looked more likely to score next. A lack of cutting edge ultimately stunted the Toffees once again, leaving serious question marks over their PL status.
Declan Rice dragged a shot narrowly wide with 15 minutes to go, but that proved purely academic as West Ham assuredly saw off Everton, marking successive H2H home league wins for the first time since 1986. Meanwhile, the Toffees are now without a win in eight PL encounters, and haven’t tasted victory in their last 10 league trips to London.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Jarrod Bowen (West Ham United)
