Bournemouth snatched a fatal 3-2 victory over Liverpool

AFC Bournemouth snatched a last-gasp 3-2 victory over Liverpool as Amine Adli scored in the fifth minute of second-half stoppage time.

Dominik Szoboszlai's excellent 80th-minute free-kick had drawn Liverpool level, after they had earlier trailed 2-0 at the Vitality Stadium.

Evanilson opened the scoring in the 26th minute, with Alex Jimenez extending Bournemouth’s lead before Virgil van Dijk pulled one back on the brink of half-time.

Liverpool seemed to have been let off the hook when Evanilson squandered a golden chance, but there was to be one last twist as Adli bundled home with the final kick of the game.

The victory moves Bournemouth up to 13th place, while Liverpool’s position in the top four is now perilous ahead of Sunday’s fixtures.

How the match unfolded

Bournemouth hit the front against the run of play. Marcos Senesi's searching pass was misjudged by Van Dijk, whose lazy attempted clearance fell for Alex Scott, and he cut back for Evanilson to drill home.

Van Dijk was partly at fault as Bournemouth doubled their lead seven minutes later, with the Dutchman playing his opponent onside as Jimenez raced onto James Hill's pass.

Yet Van Dijk atoned in the 45th minute, as he diverted Szoboszlai's corner in via his shoulder.

Jimenez was perhaps fortunate that Liverpool substitute Rio Ngumoha stayed on his feet after a clumsy challenge from the full-back in the hosts’ penalty area. However, the teenage attacker later won a free-kick for the visitors as the final 10 minutes of normal time approached.

From the resulting free-kick, Mohamed Salah flicked the ball to Szoboszlai, whose curling finish beat Bournemouth goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic.

Liverpool thought that would be enough to snatch a point, with those hopes reinforced when Evanilson dragged wide with only Alisson to beat, yet deep in stoppage time, Arne Slot’s team failed to defend a long throw, with Adli able to finish at the second attempt to spark wild celebrations.

Van Dijk struggles as Liverpool’s defence crumbles

Van Dijk may have scored, but the Liverpool captain is unlikely to look back at this game with any fondness.

He was at least partly responsible for each of Bournemouth’s goals in the first half, as he switched off twice, though Alisson also seemed to be venting his anger at Slot and the coaching staff after the Cherries’ second goal.

That was because they had dallied in making a substitution after Joe Gomez had suffered an injury while trying to prevent Bournemouth’s opener, leaving Liverpool’s defence weakened.

Yet even when Wataru Endo and, later, Andy Robertson – who has been linked with a move away from Anfield – did come on, Liverpool’s backline consistently struggled.

Straight after seeing Szoboszlai score at the other end, Liverpool fell asleep at the back, allowing Ryan Christie to test Alisson before Evanilson got in behind, only to miss from close range.

Liverpool did not heed those warnings, though, and panicked defending right at the death cost them dearly, as their long unbeaten run came to an end.

They will now look to get back on track against Newcastle United next week, though the Magpies could actually be ahead of the Reds in the standings by the time that fixture comes around.

Bournemouth just don’t give in

It was a stoppage-time goal – from Antoine Semenyo on his final appearance for Bournemouth – that enabled the Cherries to beat Tottenham Hotspur 3-2 in their last home league match.

But then Bournemouth were undone by a late equaliser in their 1-1 draw at Brighton and Hove Albion on Monday.

The penchant for late drama continued here, as the attacking intent demonstrated by Andoni Iraola paid off.

When Liverpool equalised, it would surely have been easy for Iraola to direct his troops to stay back, sit deep and try and cling on for a point.

Instead, the Spaniard made positive tactical changes and Bournemouth got straight back on the front foot.

Sure, Petrovic was tested once late on, when he denied Florian Wirtz — a save that was not spotted by the officials, who awarded a goal-kick — but otherwise it was all Bournemouth, with Christie worrying Alisson and Evanilson missing that glaring chance before Adli’s moment arrived.

Bournemouth no longer have the magic of Semenyo to rely on, but this is a team unit, and ahead of facing 20th-placed Wolverhampton Wanderers next week, the Cherries can certainly look up the table, rather than worrying about checking over their shoulders. They are now only six points behind Liverpool.