AFC Bournemouth head coach Scott Parker made three changes from the midweek stalemate with Peterborough United, for the home tie with Sheffield United at Dean Court on Saturday.
Adam Smith, Ben Pearson, and Jaidon Anthony all returned to the starting line-up, for this fixture, made difficult by the heavy rain and windy conditions.
For the first time this season, the Cherries fell behind. But it didn’t last long, just nine minutes in fact, as Dominic Solanke scored and penalty and Philip Billing scored three minutes after that and the Cherries took all three points.
With both West Bromwich Albion and Fulham losing this weekend, AFC Bournemouth goes into the international break three points clear at the top of the Championship.
After the game, Parker told Sky Sports…
“I have been here now for three months and every day I am learning something different. We had a bit of adversity today. That was the first time we have been behind this season but the reaction of the players to that pleased me greatly. After we scored the penalty, I saw a group of men wanting to grab the ball, put it in the centre-circle and go and win.
“We are going to need that mindset and that mentality throughout the year as we will go behind many times in the future. We are top of the table, undefeated, but we realise there is a lot of football to play. At the end we had to defend and grind it out. The players really at that point stood up and we managed to see out the game.”
Man of the match against Sheffield United
Billing
Christie
Smith
Solanke
A lot of pleasing aspects 👏
The gaffer liked what he saw from his side at Vitality Stadium this afternoon 🔥🔥
— AFC Bournemouth 🍒 (@afcbournemouth) October 2, 2021
"We showed brilliant resilience and character"
Bournemouth boss Scott Parker was delighted with his side after they came form behind to beat Sheffield United
Listen to his reaction, he's been speaking to @kristemple #afcb 🔊👇https://t.co/b2L21aEz6f
— BBC Radio Solent Sport (@solentsport) October 2, 2021
"We knew this would be our toughest test"
A battered and bruised Ben Pearson spoke to @kristemple after Bournemouth came from behind to beat Sheffield United
Listen to his post-match reaction #afcb 🔊👇 pic.twitter.com/nuLSsIj97g
— BBC Radio Solent Sport (@solentsport) October 2, 2021
Written by darwinsdummy
If I had to give a negative, it’s that when we park the bus we really invite a lot of pressure and crosses, but that’s also a trend we’ve seen in previous games. The caveat to it being that we’ve generally been resolute in those circumstances, so as long as we only do it to protect a lead instead of hanging on to a draw, I’m happy.
Excellent work all around by the team, since no one has mentioned him yet I’ll give a shoutout to Dom for showing the willingness to run in behind, winning the (possibly outside the box) penalty and putting it away, and the nice link up to give Zemura a great chance.
Others have mentioned him already, but also really happy with how Christie has been fitting into the team, first game or two with us was a bit slow, but now that he’s up to speed he’s showing a lot of fight and creativity, just what we want.
https://twitter.com/lloydkelly4/status/1444368842298376193?s=20
Your say…
Toronto John wrote…
Man, no risk of dozing off during that one!! A little something for everybody, I think.
Christie looks like a real find, might not be as much of a threat on offense as Brooks, but he works hard!! Smith flying around the pitch, especially in the first half.
Pearson and Lerma ….. hard men who played exceptionally well despite some knocks.
That’s entertainment ……. what I was told the Championship would be like. Even a small melee.
Topfarrier added…
Great result in difficult conditions…..we did what we do….ground out a result….got a bit lucky with the pen but we’ll take it…… don’t know what it is with opposition striker’s missing sitters but long may it continue….. better to have a lucky manager than a good one…..Pearlo and Lerma were magnificent….as was Christie.
We are going to be very hard to beat.
https://twitter.com/BillingPhilip/status/1444378488618770433?s=20
Red_till_im_ded added…
Challenge outside the box that continued into it. How that challenge didn’t warrant a red card is beyond me. Both feet off the ground and out of control. You can see the studs going into Dom’s thigh. – Join the conversation, click here.
https://twitter.com/kristemple/status/1444336727255040005?s=20
That doesn't look too bad, does it, @afcbournemouth?#EFL | #SkyBetChampionship pic.twitter.com/FfZNv33APH
— Sky Bet Championship (@SkyBetChamp) October 2, 2021
