Bournemouth stuns Liverpool with dramatic late goal
Bournemouth secured a thrilling 3-2 victory over Liverpool on Saturday, with Amine Adli scoring a dramatic late strike in the fifth minute of added time. The goal followed a chaotic scramble in the box, sending the home supporters into raptures, reports BritPanorama.
Despite facing a two-goal deficit at halftime, Liverpool showcased remarkable resilience. Virgil van Dijk reduced the arrears with a header just before the break, and Dominik Szoboszlai completed the comeback with ten minutes remaining, converting a free-kick taken by Mohamed Salah.
The defeat marks Liverpool’s first loss since November 2024 and leaves them without a Premier League victory in 2025. Manager Arne Slot expressed that the result was particularly harsh given his team’s spirited recovery.
“It is a cruel game if you lose in extra time after coming back from 2-0 down at half-time,” Slot reflected. He cited fixture congestion as a significant factor in the match’s outcome, noting a tight schedule with only a two-day gap between fixtures. “It is fair to say that in the last 10 minutes it was more open but I could see that my players were tired because we only had two days in between each game,” he explained.
Slot acknowledged that Bournemouth’s final ten minutes were their strongest spell, adding that he could not fault his exhausted squad when confronting such an intense opponent. Van Dijk, displaying evident frustration post-match, voiced his dismay at conceding late in the game. “I am very disappointed. Last minute of the game is very tough to take; we worked very hard in the second half to get back in the game and to concede that late is disappointing,” the Dutch defender stated.
Following Adli’s decisive goal, Van Dijk was seen expressing his grievances to the referee, indicating that he felt obstructed in the build-up to the goal. “What I felt on that pitch is that I was blocked but the referee and VAR didn’t give it,” he noted. He pointed to a crucial moment of possession as a turning point, succinctly stating, “In the end, that throw-in cost us.”
In a match where Liverpool’s first-half collapse proved damaging, they found themselves in a significant hole after just seven minutes of chaotic play. Evanilson opened the scoring after Van Dijk failed to clear, leading to a troubling sequence for Liverpool when Joe Gomez sustained an injury during an attempt to intervene, forcing the team to continue with ten men for a period.
Despite acknowledging the squad’s unity, Van Dijk underlined the need for improvements. “I don’t think there is any question about our togetherness, but the consistency we are looking for still needs to be found,” he conceded, emphasising the commitment to securing future victories.
As Liverpool navigates a dip in form, the return to winning ways will be crucial, marking a moment for reflection on the balance between recovery and resilience in the demanding landscape of modern football.
