Key events
FULL TIME! Bournemouth 0-4 Liverpool (Nunez 2, Jota 2)
That was a game of two halves – one a stalemate, the other a rout. Liverpool, in the end, were far too good at finishing.
90+8 min The player of the match is Jota. He was very good, both fluent and ruthless, but then so was Nunez.
90+7 min Nunez is sniffing a hat-trick, but he gets a yellow card instead as he tracks back and administers a cynical shove.
90+5 min Chance for Bournemouth! Moments after a penalty shout for Liverpool, the ball is up the other end and Moore, running onto a through ball, goes closer than Bournemouth have gone all game.
Gomez swung in a fine cross from the right – who needs Trent? – and Nunez shrugged off two defenders to clip it home. If you’d never seen him before today, you’d think he was world-class.
GOAL! Bournemouth 0-4 Liverpool (Nunez 90+3)
Oh, it’s just a perfect day.
90 min There will be eight more minutes. Truly, Andrew Madley, that seems deeply unkind.
89 min Chance for Bournemouth! Brooks is clean through, looking to curl the ball past Alisson, but it comes off his toe (in the expert opinion of Alan Smith) and goes jagging out for a goal kick.
88 min Yet another corner to Bournemouth. Can they get a consolation goal? They cannot. Liverpool clear and the man haring down the left is Bobby Clark, who is confident enough to try a stepover. Meanwhile Aarons is going off with what looks like a strained hamstring, so poor old Bournemouth are down to ten men.
86 min As it stands, Liverpool are not just five points clear at the top – they’re also top for goal difference, with 26, one more than Man City.
83 min Klopp sees the chance to bring on a couple of kids: Bobby Clark, whose dad is Lee Clark of Newcastle, and Owen Beck, whose great-uncle is Ian Rush. If that doesn’t make you feel old, nothing will.
Jota had just struck thin air, for once. There was just time to think “that’s not like him” when he pounced on the loose ball and slammed it into the far corner. So he may have to be given an assist as well as another goal. He’s such a good squad player.
GOAL! Bournemouth 0-3 Liverpool (Jota 80)
Jota, bloody hell.
77 min Bournemouth win a corner, their eighth I make it, but as usual they don’t look like turning it into a goal.
“Manchester City’s ‘game in hand’ is against Ivan Toney,” says Rick Harris, helpfully supplying the single quotes himself. “And Brentford did the double on the Champions last season, so I would say a point would be a result for Kevin’s team.” Ha. They face each other twice in the next month, so another double is on.
75 min Bournemouth get forward again down the left and win a free kick. They’ve shown plenty of spirit, but hardly any threat. Liverpool have shown that if you keep Solanke quiet, Bournemouth look a bit ordinary.
Again it was a team goal. Jota found Nunez, who did well to win a scrap 25 yards out. He slipped the ball to Gakpo, who passed it on to Jota, and his finish was typically decisive.
GOAL! Bournemouth 0-2 Liverpool (Jota 70)
It’s in the bag.
69 min Bournemouth bring on another sub – David Brooks for Justin Kluivert, who had his moments. Then Liverpool get into the box and Gravenbearch has a low shot, easily saved.
66 min Two 20-year-olds get into a scrap and the upshot is a yellow card for Conor Bradley, possibly for a high kick, as Alex Scott goes down in a heap.
On another tack… “Greetings from Gent in Belgium!” says Kim Thonger. “A marvellous long slow slap up lunch has been enjoyed, and the pièce de résistance was the dessert, Zabaglione Al Marsala.
“My question is, has there ever been a footballer named Zabaglione Al Marsala? And if not, for heaven’s sake why not? It’s a commentator’s dream. ‘Sherry Trifle sends in an inch perfect pass to Eton Mess, he slips it to Zabaglione Al Marsala, who slots it home with panache’. See?”
63 min A Bournemouth corner brings only a galloping Liverpool counter, which turns out to have everything but the final ball. And here come the Liverpool subs: the only big names on their bench, Gravenberch and Gakpo, replace Elliott and Diaz.
60 min As the sand runs out in the hour glass, Bournemouth get forward for the first time in a while with Kluivert spraying the ball to wide to Tavernier, who has a shot that is instantly stifled. Meanwhile Jurgen Klopp is lining up some subs.
59 min Bradley, still in the thick of it on his Premier League debut, draws a foul from Lewis Cook, who goes into the book. The Liverpool players felt there were some afters too.
58 min As it stands, Liverpool are five points ahead of Man City, who have a game in hand – the home fixture against Brentford that was postponed last month. That isn’t happening till 20 February.
56 min Iraola, seeing his team struggle, does something about it. Off go Sinisterra and Hill, on come Alex Scott and Lloyd Kelly.
55 min Bradley is still looking rueful about that chance when he gets another one, a shot that’s blocked. More has happened in ten minutes since half-time than in the whole of the first half.
51 min So the leaders lead. But Bournemouth bounce back, with a decent chance for Kluivert, whose shot is deflected wide. It’s end to end now. Jota thinks he should have a penalty, but there’s nothing in it, Nunez turns provider, sending a lovely chip over to Bradley, who might have scored if he was used to this sort of thing.
It was all too easy for Liverpool. Elliott went back to Konate, who went long to Jones in space near the D. He found Jota, who saw that Nunez had a clear run down the middle. His finish was disarmingly calm.
GOAL! Bournemouth 0-1 Liverpool (Nunez 49)
The deadlock is broken!
46 min All the recorded shots in the first half, bar one, were from outside the box. Gomez adds to that collection now with a speculative effort that is easily blocked. He has never scored a Premier League goal.
46 min Liverpool kick off, but it’s Bournemouth who look sharp and get forward. Christie and Solanke can’t quite join the dots.
Andoni Iraola is giving an interview. “I think there have been spaces,” he says. “Strong words from me there, we have to be really aggressive with the second [balls]… We finished well in the first half, second half the game will open out… We have to suffer.”
“I know the wind is blowing hard,” says Joe Pearson, “but is it going in a particular direction, or just swirling? The longer passes have been almost uniformly dreadful.” I wish I could tell you! It’s not easy to tell on the telly. The Met Office says it’s coming from the south-south-west… or does SSW mean southerly and swirling?
“Has a club ever been docked points,” asks Johnathan Kaszynski, “because of their TV camera angle?” Haha. Bournemouth’s is certainly on the low side. But maybe that means the camerapeople are safe in the wind.
“I think of Liverpool and Bournemouth as two of the most dynamic teams in the Premier League,” says Kári Tulinius, “but the play, so far, has been very slack. I thought the players would be replenished by having a week off, but mentally they seem like they’re still in warm weather training.” Yes, and the wind isn’t helping.
“We’re living in an era,” says Rupak Pramanik, “where Bournemouth with 37% possession looks very much entertaining and threatening, contrary to Man Utd with 37% possession.” Ha. They did get a 0-0 off Liverpool too.
“I know players aren’t supposed to surround the referee and complain,” says Luke Jones. “But… I have a feeling that Kluivert would have been sent off if the Liverpool players had shown a bit more outrage at that tackle. It’s probably hard for the VAR to call that a red card when Liverpool just kept playing and Jones even dribbled right past Diaz as he was rolling around on the ground in apparent agony.” Perhaps a reflection of a less experienced Liverpool team. But it’s good that they got on with the game, isn’t it?
In other news, Bayern Munich have lost! At home to Werder Bremen, which is like Liverpool losing this game (if it was at Anfield).
HALF-TIME! Bournemouth 0-0 Liverpool
Still no goals, and no big chances either. Bournemouth won the first ten minutes and the last five; Liverpool were the better team for half an hour for so in the middle; neither keeper broke sweat. Mo and Trent, if you’re reading this, we miss you.
45+1 min Only two mins of added time, which seems a little stingy. Bournemouth get forward again, winning a couple of throw-ins on the left wing. Donate again gets his head to the ball first, and that will be that for now.
45 min More glimmers of hope for the home fans. Solanke twists and turns and plays a cut-back to nobody. Sinisterra ducks and weaves and plays a great cross, but Solanke finds a team mate barging in front of him at the vital moment. Then Liverpool steal the ball with their mid-press and win a corner. Elliott’s cross finds Konate, who can’t keep the header down.
44 min Bournemouth break out from the back and Elliott is sufficiently bothered to bring down Solanke in the centre circle. Still no cards.
42 min Bournemouth get in the box again, only to find Van Dijk blocking their way, literally. He blocks a shot from Kluivert and then he blocks a shot from Christie.
40 min The pendulum of possession has truly swung: it was 59-41 to Bournemouth, now it’s 63-37 to Liverpool. But Bournemouth are carving an opening after a fine ball out to the right wing from Christie. He keeps going and gets on the end of the cross, but there’s no power in his shot.
38 min Jota plays what might have been the cross of the day, a lovely little roll across the six-yard box, but it’s just behind the advancing Nunez.
36 min Now Diaz is down, after Kluivert, emerging from a one-on-one with Mac Allister, stepped on his ankle. Klopp has a friendly word with the fourth official. “In between yellow and red,” reckons Alan Smith. No card as far as I can tell, and Diaz is back on his feet.
34 min Liverpool string some more passes together. Jones collides with Tavernier and they both go down, but then they both get up again. Liverpool keep on passing. The latest person to take a long shot is Diaz, who doesn’t middle it or bother Neto.
32 min After taking ten minutes off, Bournemouth are back at their desk. Sinisterra sets off on a mazy run down the left, beating three defenders, then twisting and turning so much that he confuses himself.
31 min Liverpool threaten again as Diaz’s cross invites a scissor kick from Nunez. He accepts the invitation but misses the kick, then takes it out on the nearest defender and commits a cheap foul.
30 min As the half-hour comes up, it’s all Liverpool. The busy Elliott slips in the dangerous Diaz, who can’t quite gather it. Of the last 65 passes, 58 have been by players wearing white, black and random bits of green.
I’m not sure how I ended up here, but I thought this post was awesome. I have no idea who you are, but you will become a well-known blogger if you aren’t already. Salutations.
It was great seeing how much work you put into it. The picture is nice, and your writing style is stylish, but you seem to be worrying that you should be presenting the next article. I’ll almost certainly be back to read more of your work if you take care of this hike.
It was great seeing how much work you put into it. The picture is nice, and your writing style is stylish, but you seem to be worrying that you should be presenting the next article. I’ll almost certainly be back to read more of your work if you take care of this hike.