Sam Surridge scored the equalizer against his former club to help Nottingham Forest produce one of the close football scores of the weekend in the Premier League. The strain on head coach Gary O’Neil was reduced after Jaidon Anthony’s first-half goal appeared to put an end to the Cherries’ four-game losing streak in the Premier League. However, seven minutes from the end, goalscorer Surridge, who started his career with the Dorset club, tapped in Brennan Johnson’s cross from close range. O’Neil is still looking for his first victory since being named Bournemouth’s permanent manager in November as a result of the dramatic turn in the match that dropped Bournemouth into the relegation zone. While everything was going on, Forest, who had been playing well, kept it going by scoring 11 of the final 18 points.
After arriving from Newcastle on Friday, Forest gave striker Wood his debut, and Bournemouth made five changes, including the debut of new acquisition Dango Ouattara. Prior to Yates’ 13th-minute header being overturned on review, the visitors had a promising start and troubled Cherries goalkeeper Neto.
Bournemouth climbed into the game despite not scoring or recording a point in the top tier since November 12. After a Jordan Zemura cross was deflected by unmarked striker Kieffer Moore, the team’s lengthy drought was finally broken by Anthony in the 28th minute with the help of the team’s newest player. Outrunning Renan Lodi on the right, Burkina Faso forward Ouattara, who was acquired from French side Lorient on Thursday for £20 million, crossed for Anthony to take a touch, reach the far corner with a confident strike across Wayne Hennessey, and score.
Zemura, a roving left-back, was constantly giving the opposition issues. He delivered another dangerous center that Ryan Christie narrowly glanced wide after Forest captain Joe Worrall blocked a goal-bound shot of his on the line. In the 45th minute, Danilo, a 21-year-old Brazilian midfielder, was substituted in for the injured Yates, forcing Forest to make a change. In the second period, Cooper’s team tried to get back into the game, but they had trouble producing any clear chances at first.
After a well-executed corner routine, Gibbs-White fired directly at Neto before Surridge finally broke Bournemouth’s defense. To the prejudice of his struggling former employers, Surridge was able to celebrate his first Premier League goal of the season after Johnson created space on the right and another VAR review.
“Hey, booed on and booed off. In all seriousness, I assure you that there was no malice intended. Sam is a great friend to us. He has been outstanding ever since he arrived. I only have good things to say about him. He is a terrific teammate who works incredibly hard and has never let us down,” Nottingham Forest head coach Steve Cooper said. “I am extremely delighted for him to score his first Premier League goal at the team he started with and to hear the crowd boo him as he enters the field. No one deserves that moment more than he does. Because everyone loves him so much, I just pointed him out to the other players in the dressing room. When he scored his first Premier League goal, there was a small round of applause.”
“My first feeling is dissatisfaction because the boys put a lot of effort,” Bournemouth head coach Gary O’Neil said. “It’s a negligible mistake for the goal. Forest is a threat in transition, but we controlled it flawlessly the entire game. They don’t really damage you when they have the ball in their hands, but they do when you make a mistake. That one of them caught us was annoying. There were a lot of good things about the game as well, but with the game being so close to being over, I’m unhappy we weren’t able to get the whole three points.”
For more football scores, click here
