Bournemouth 0 Liverpool 4
Bournemouth welcomed Liverpool to the Vitality Stadium as the two most in-form teams faced each other in this Premier League showdown. For Jurgen Klopp’s side, they had the chance to go five points clear at the top of the table.
Dominic Solanke was awarded the player of the month award for December and had the chance to show his former employers what they are missing out on. Andoni Iraola’s side were looking to bounce back from a recent defeat in North London to Tottenham.
The Cherries got off to a good start and put the visitors under some pressure but they could not fashion any clear-cut chances as the Liverpool defence remained solid. Klopp’s side were struggling to get a foothold in what had started as quite a scrappy affair.
Luis Diaz looked to win the ball deep in the Bournemouth half when Justin Kluivert went in heavy into the challenge. The Liverpool winger stayed down, seemingly in some pain, but the referee did not even award a free kick to the visitors.
Credit: @LFC
This is one of the most frustrating things in the modern game, consistency. When you have the video technology we do, it is the bare minimum you come to expect. The replay showed that Kluivert caught Diaz above the ankle with his studs showing.
VAR reviewed the incident and cleared it, much to the annoyance of Jurgen Klopp. One of his players, Curtis Jones, was sent off for a very similar incident against Tottenham and subsequently banned for three matches as a result.
It seems as though we are just supposed to accept these things nowadays and look forward to apologies from Howard Webb and analysis from Dermot Gallagher to appease fans. The reality is Webb’s words mean as much as a partner promising not to cheat again after being caught out for the tenth time.
Ironically, the player who was lucky to still be on the pitch, then created the best chance for the hosts towards the end of the half. As he twisted and turned to get to the byline, he whipped a ball across the six yard box but no Bournemouth player could get a telling touch to convert the chance.
Whatever Jurgen Klopp said at half-time had the intended effect as Liverpool scored a wonderful team goal after the restart. Jones played it into Jota, who fed it to Nunez, with the Liverpool striker stroking the ball home to give the visitors the lead.
After The Cherries’ fans had spent most of the game chanting about how the Uruguayan was just a poor version of Any Carroll, Nunez came back to silence their taunts. The goal seemed to knock the wind out of the sails of Iraola’s team.
Credit: @LFC
As Bournemouth looked to find a way back into the game, the ball was played to Kluivert on the edge of the box. The Cherries’ attacker fired a shot off but it deflected off Van Dijk, looping up wide of Alisson’s goal, much to the relief of the away fans.
Darwin Nunez was causing problems again as his physical presence saw him win the ball and find Gakpo. The Liverpool substitute spotted the run of Jota, who drilled the ball past Neto to double The Reds’ lead on the south coast.
Liverpool came forward again as Gravenberch and Gakpo combined to find Nunez in a wide position. While his cross was too deep to find anyone, Bradley recycled it and found Jota in the box. His first effort was nothing more than a wild swing, but the Portuguese attacker’s second effort found the back of the net and sealed the win for the visitors.
By this stage, The Cherries were done, knowing there was no way back into the game. Iraola’s side managed to find Brooks, with only the keeper to beat, but his attempt to dink it past Alisson was all types of wrong as it harmlessly went wide of the post.
Liverpool then added a cherry to the top of the icing on the cake as Gomez swung a cross into the box for Nunez to slot past Neto to get his second goal. Say what you like about the striker but this was a classy finish to top off an impressive second half display.
Darwin Nunez now has ten goals and ten assists in the Premier League this season, the first player to achieve this feat. He adds another dimension for Jurgen Klopp’s side with his physical presence and pace and must be a nightmare for defenders to contain.
The Reds put in a classy performance in the second half and looked like a team thriving at the top of the league while also making Bournemouth look like a team lingering in mid-table. Andoni Iraola acknowledged that his side were simply beaten by a better team in his post-match interview.
Many had concerns for Liverpool’s ability to continue to challenge at the top in the absence of Mohamed Salah, who is representing Egypt at the AFCON tournament. Man of the match Diogo Jota ensured that Reds’ fans had nothing to worry about without their ‘Egyptian King’.
It was a good day at the office for the league leaders, with plenty of players putting in impressive shifts. Konate and Van Dijk looked a solid pairing while Bradley looked completely at home in his first Premier League start. Add to that the performance of Alexis Mac Allister who bossed the midfield areas throughout the game.
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