Explore the thrilling match where Evanilson shone brightly, guiding Bournemouth to a 3-1 triumph against Southampton. Get insights and highlights here.
Introduction:
Evanilson scores his first for AFC Bournemouth as the Cherries held off south-coast rivals Southampton to nick a crucial 3-1 victory in the Premier League. The win will be Bournemouth’s first at home this season and features goals from Dango Ouattara and Antoine Semenyo, taking over the game at the Vitality Stadium. Southampton’s Taylor Harwood-Bellis scored in the final ten minutes of the game, but it was too little, too late.
Early Domination by Bournemouth in First Half
Bournemouth takes the lead right from the word go in this match as Marcus Tavernier does the thinking on a free kick to set up his teammate Evanilson, a Brazilian striker who coolly volleyed it past former Bournemouth goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale in the 17th minute to put Bournemouth ahead while also showing growing chemistry with fellow players, even as he had not struggled during much of the season.
See also: Bournemouth’s Disappointing 1-1 Draw with Newcastle: Premier League
Just a few minutes later, Bournemouth scored their second goal in lucky circumstances. A shot by Lewis Cook deflected off Ouattara and trickled past Ramsdale for a comfortable cushioning of the lead. The dominance continued with a solo run by Antoine Semenyo in the penalty area and twisting past defenders before drilling a low shot into the bottom left corner. His goal gave them a 3-0 lead at the end of the first half after a sensational display from the home side.
Southampton Finds Some Life, but It’s Still Not Enough
Southampton finally came out firing in the second half, but it was too little, too late. Taylor Harwood-Bellis gave them a glimmer of hope within five minutes of the second half. He stooped over to head Mateus Fernandes’ deflected cross into the net. Earlier, Harwood-Bellis had been given a crack at the Bournemouth goal by Kepa Arrizabalaga, who pulled off a superb save.
But Southampton’s momentum to swing the game back into their favor was dented by Bournemouth’s defense that went into the book. Ben Brereton Diaz from off the bench nearly reduced the margin to half when he missed the chance just by a whisker as Milos Kerkez fended for Bournemouth to let Yukinari Sugawara have an outright scoring opportunity. Bournemouth equalized well and easily concluded the game.
Evanilson Breaks His Duck in Style
The goal the first one for the Premier League ends an anxious wait for the 24-year-old Brazilian striker, Evanilson, who was taken from Porto over the summer for an eye-watering transfer fee of £40.2 million. After all, he had not scored in the first four league games, while this match saw him fail to score a crucial penalty as his team lost to Chelsea by a solitary goal. His composed finish from a fine pass from Tavernier showed the striker’s sharp instincts and bodes well for the future.
Ranger manager Andoni Iraola, who watched the game from the stands as punishment for a touchline ban, will be optimistic that this goal is the first of a prolific scoring run for Evanilson. The striker had another fine opportunity to double his tally late in the match as he was one on one with Ramsdale but was thwarted.
Semenyo and Ouattara: Bournemouth’s Two Stirring Winger Act
While one wraith of magic from a first goal by Evanilson was doing the rounds, it was yet another production from the same side, Southampton, which saw two other interesting acts. Antoine Semenyo and Dango Ouattara had been nothing if not threats on the flanks all along. The speedy winger in particular had threatened Southampton with vengeance several times on the flanks. His solo third score for the Premier League campaign was reminiscent of how he created chances out of nothing. But the main man making all the difference so far is possibly this young man here: Ouattara. Plenty of hazardous crosses coming in, great service for the backline pressure against Southampton, and second goal assistant, result.
These two dynamic wingers are proving to be an exciting partnership for Bournemouth and if they can continue their form, then Cherries will have plentiful firepower this season.
Southampton Stagnates Again
Southampton lost, and yet another performance has disappointed the new Southampton regime in its return to the Premier League. Russell Martin’s side has gathered only one point from the first six matches and is second from the bottom in league standings. But Saints were undone by their wretched start to the match, although they did show quite a bit more fight in the last hour and would be gutted to have seen the match slip away from them due to their first-half lapses with Bournemouth making so much of those mistakes.
Ryan Fraser revisited the Vitality Stadium for the first time since his infamous departure in 2020, receiving a barrage of boos from the Bournemouth faithful; still, he and his teammates could not leave their mark on the game as they struggled to penetrate through the defense of Bournemouth.
Conclusion
Bournemouth played an exemplary game of attacking football as it edged Southampton 3-1. All these three players, Evanilson, Semenyo, and Ouattara, played a crucial role. The win puts Bournemouth up to 11th in the Premier League standings, and it’s early-season struggles that continue for Southampton, who sit 19th with just one point from six games. This victory, of course, can mark the start of bigger and better things ahead-the win, definitely more importantly, coming for Evanilson in terms of getting his very first goal in English football.