Bournemouth blow 2-goal lead as Newcastle snatch point at the death

It was a painful ending for Bournemouth. They had looked set to claim a 3rd straight win at St. James’ Park and finally get off the mark under their new manager, but another late concession left them with only a point and an unwanted slice of Premier League history.

Newcastle arrived with confidence after 3 unbeaten matches under Matthias Jaissle and the chance to move temporarily to the top of the table.

Match highlight

Bournemouth went ahead inside 10 minutes when Alex Scott’s deflected effort fell invitingly to Marcus Tavernier at the far post. The winger reacted quickly and finished without hesitation to give the visitors an early lead.

Sven Botman’s loose pass found Evanilson unmarked around 18 yards from goal, but the Bournemouth striker sent his left-footed effort over the bar when he should have done better.

Newcastle’s defence looked loose, and Bournemouth nearly doubled their advantage again in the 25th minute when Tavernier drove a sharp effort toward the bottom corner after a quick move down the left. Lukas Hornicek had to make an important save.

Justin Kluivert struck the post, Scott reacted first to send the ball back into the area, and the cross deflected off Malick Thiaw before finding the far corner.

At 2-0, the visitors looked in complete control but Newcastle found a lifeline before half-time through Harvey Barnes. 

The winger cut in from the left and produced a superb curling finish into the top-right corner, giving the home crowd belief just when the game seemed to be getting away from them.

The interval came at an awkward time for Newcastle, who had begun to build momentum. Yet after the restart, they struggled to turn more possession into clear chances.

Joe Willock headed wide early in the 2nd half, but Bournemouth’s defensive shape held firm and Newcastle gradually began to look short of ideas.

Jaissle turned to expensive new signing Matias Fernandez-Pardo in an attempt to force a turnaround, but the changes did not immediately deliver the attacking sharpness Newcastle had shown in last week’s 2-0 win at Tottenham.

Bournemouth were still in control of their own fate. But after conceding late in both of their opening matches, they could never fully relax. Their fears came true 2 minutes from time when a messy situation inside the box fell to Ramsey, who kept his composure and tucked the ball into the bottom corner.

The late goal rescued Newcastle and left Bournemouth devastated. Rose’s side have now become the first team in Premier League history to score first in each of their opening 3 matches of a season without winning any of them.

For Newcastle, it was not the performance they wanted, but the late fight at least preserved their unbeaten run.