Ipswich Town 1-0 AFC Bournemouth - Half-Time
Sunday, 8th Dec 2024 15:00
Conor Chaplin’s first Premier League goal has given the Blues a 1-0 lead over AFC Bournemouth at Portman Road at half-time.
Town made five changes from the team which lost 1-0 at home to Crystal Palace on Tuesday with Jack Taylor handed his first Premier League start.
The midfielder, who had previously made nine appearances off the bench, came in for Jens Cajuste, who dropped to the bench alongside Kalvin Phillips, evidently not considered ready to start following his ankle injury.
Cameron Burgess returned at centre-half and Ben Johnson at right-back with Jacob Greaves out of the 20-man squad and Harry Clarke among the subs, both having started against the Eagles.
Chaplin came back into the XI as the number 10 with Omari Hutchinson moving to the right and Sammie Szmodics on the left. Wes Burns and Jack Clarke dropped to the bench.
The Cherries made one change from the team which beat Tottenham 1-0 on Thursday with Lewis Cook replacing Tyler Adams in central midfield.
There was controversy in the opening seconds when Justin Kluivert swung an arm into Sam Morsy’s face as the Town skipper ran past him off the ball as the centre was being taken. Play was stopped but neither referee Michael Salisbury nor VAR official Paul Tierney saw the challenge as worthy of censure. It was difficult to see what Kluivert was trying to do other than make deliberate contact with the Town captain.
Once play had got back under way, the Blues started more positively than in recent matches, winning an early corner which Taylor nodded back across goal and Liam Delap headed across the face and well wide.
However, the Cherries began to take charge and went close to opening the scoring in the eighth minute. Antoine Semenyo played Milos Kerkez in on the left of the box and the Hungarian international sent a ball across the six-yard box which Marcus Tavernier somehow failed to connect with at the far post.
Town were next to threaten, Delap playing a pass forward for Szmodics to chase but visitors’ keeper Kepa was able to claim ahead of the Irish international.
On 12, Delap was shown the game’s first yellow card for a late tackle on Illia Zabarnyi, not the first foul referee Salisbury had given against the Town striker, who is now on four Premier League bookings for the season.
Two minutes later, with rain now falling very heavily, the Blues passed their way out from the back with Chaplin eventually crossing from the right and Zabarnyi turning behind after Szmodics had been unable to get a touch.
Following the corner, Taylor shot wide from the edge of the box, then on 17 Szmodics was cautioned for a late tackle on Adam Smith as Bournemouth attacked after play had continued and the Blues had won a corner at the other end.
In the wake of that flag-kick, Johnson and Hutchinson exchanged passes on the right before the ex-Chelsea man sent over a cross which Burgess powerfully headed onto the roof of the net.
As the game moved towards the 20-minute mark, with the Blues on top, Hutchinson looped an effort over from outside the area after a Leif Davis long throw on the left.
And a minute later, another throw from former Cherries loanee Davis on the left led to Town’s opening goal.
Burgess challenged with defenders at the near post, Dara O’Shea, wearing a bandage following his clash of heads on Tuesday, battled for the next ball, which fell back to the Australian international. Burgess shaped to shoot, but cut back to Chaplin, who hit across Kepa and into the corner of the net to claim his first Premier League goal.
Both Chaplin and the Portman Road crowd, which was already making significant noise, were elated, the Blues having netted first in a game for the first time since the victory over Spurs a month ago.
Town looked to make their lead pay and on 26 won another corner, which the Cherries failed to deal with and Taylor was able to strike a shot from just inside the box which took a deflection and Kepa did well to palm wide to his right.
From that flag-kick, the Blues had the ball in the net again, Burgess getting above Cook and the ball going in off one or other of them. Referee Salisbury, who had managed to irk both sets of fans in the opening half an hour, immediately gave a free-kick, apparently indicating a foul by the Town defender. VAR upheld the decision, although for a foul by Delap on keeper Kepa.
Bournemouth were next to threaten in a game which was living up to Town manager Kieran McKenna’s expectations that it would be an open affair. After some loose passing at the back by the Blues, Kluivert was able to stab it out to Tavernier on the right, going to ground as he did so. The former Rangers man shot across Aro Muric but off the Kosovan’s right post and to safety.
VAR subsequently took a look at whether Kluivert had been fouled but there appeared no contact from O’Shea as he missed both player and ball with his kick and the Dutch international seeming to have collided with Burgess in the aftermath. Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola was booked soon afterwards for his protests.
The Cherries, who had been on top since the disallowed goal, were presented with a golden opportunity to level in the 36th minute when Town skipper Morsy lost his footing a third of the way inside the Blues’ half. Kluivert had a free run at goal but Burgess caught up with him and slid in to make a perfect challenge as the former Ajax and Roma man was about to unleash his shot.
Burgess and O’Shea were once again putting in solid displays at the back, the former Accrington man heading a Semenyo cross behind in the 38th minute.
Two minutes later, Evanilson flicked a header over at the near post with the Blues under pressure. On 43, Semenyo scraped a shot wide from the edge of the area after Town had again lost possession.
The Blues were able to escape a minute later, but Szmodics’s effort from the edge of the area was too close to Kepa, who claimed comfortably.
After Evanilson had been fortunate not to be shown a yellow card after going in on Muric as the keeper claimed the ball, the Blues saw out the rest of the three additional minutes.
Town had started more brightly in previous recent games before the visitors came more into it. However, the Blues got back on top again and were regularly creating half-chances if not chances and deserved their goal when it came.
After the correctly disallowed goal, it had been almost all Bournemouth with the Blues grateful that Tavernier’s shot struck the post and for Burgess’s superbly timed challenge.
A tough second half will follow but with Town perhaps having the advantage in the later stages that they had two more days’ rest than the visitors.
Town: Muric, Johnson, Burgess, O’Shea, Davis, Morsy, Taylor, Hutchinson, Chaplin, Szmodics, Delap. Subs: Walton, H Clarke, Burns, Phillips, Cajuste, Al-Hamadi, Townsend, Broadhead, J Clarke.
AFC Bournemouth: Kepa, Smith, Zabarnyi, Huijsen, Kerkez, Cook, Christie, Kluivert, Semenyo, Tavernier, Evanilson. Subs: Dennis, Travers, Brooks, Ouattara, Jill, Unal, Billing, Aarons, Kinsey. Referee: Michael Salisbury (Preston). VAR official: Paul Tierney.
_Photo: Reuters_
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