It was a strange game at the Emirates. Arsenal looked much the better in the first half, but when the game turned more in Bournemouth's favour, the Cherries could not find a finish. Eddie Howe might have been pleased to see Ryan Fraser make an impact when he came on, but there was not enough fight about the team in the first half and when Bournemouth did start to work harder, nothing really came off for their front men.
The best chances of the game, apart from when Arsenal scored, probably all fell to Bournemouth. So why did they have so much difficulty in finding the net? The most glaring opportunity probably fell to Callum Wilson when he beat two players on the edge of the box, rounded Leno but run out of an angle looking for Josh King just three yards out.
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What was clear is that Ryan Fraser still makes things happen and he added energy and purpose to Bournemouth's game when he came on. I didn't see enough of that from Harry Wilson, and at times Philip Billing looks like he'd rather be somewhere else than playing football. Perhaps Ryan and Lewis Cook will replace these two players in the next game and give AFCB more fight going forward.
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| Are Billing's performances a bit too variable? |
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If that was frustrating and deserved a goal, there was also Dominic Solanke's headed miss in the first half when Rico put in a superb ball for him to head wide unchallenged. Callum Wilson had a half-chance right at the death as well but could only shoot right at Leno. It was that kind of day. The ball just didn't run for Bournemouth in this game.
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There is no doubt Fraser and Lewis Cook add cohesiveness and confidence to the team. Fraser's recent performances don't seem to have been affected by the admittedly infuriating contract situation, so he must start if fully fit.
ReplyDeleteDelighted to see Rico proving his detractors wrong !