Afc Bournemouth

The winger was absent for Erik ten Hag's side at Old Trafford, with the manager simply stating he was injured.

But ahead of Friday's FA Cup clash with Everton, the club revealed Antony had been training on Wednesday, putting concerns to rest over any lingering problems.

Antony netted in his first three Premier League games for the Red Devils following his arrival at the start of the campaign, although he has not scored again since then.

The Brazil international's most recent goal came against Everton, and he will hope to be involved against the Toffees this week.

However, it appears former Everton loanee Donny van de Beek is set for a spell on the sidelines.

In just his second league start of the season, the midfielder was on the receiving end of a brutal challenge from Bournemouth defender Marcos Senesi.

Ten Hag was unable to disclose the extent of the issue in his post-match comments, acknowledging: "We need to wait 24 hours. But it is not looking very good."

The Gunners swept aside Bournemouth as Saka's penalty opened the scoring before late second-half finishes from Leandro Trossard and Declan Rice sealed another much-needed victory.

With two games to spare, Arsenal have equalled their Premier League win tally from last season (26), only in 1930-31 (28) and 1970-71 (29) have the Gunners won more games in a single top-flight campaign.

That is in large part thanks to Saka, who became the first player to score 20 goals for Arsenal in a season (all competitions) since Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in 2019-20 (29 goals).

He is also the first Englishman to do so for the club since Theo Walcott in 2012-13 (21 goals) and Arteta was quick to praise star winger Saka.

"The level of consistency compared to last year is very similar," the Arsenal manager said at his post-match press conference. 

"There are areas he's better in. I see a different edge to him in the way he competes. He loves winning more than three months ago."

Kai Haverz won Saka's first-half penalty, though Bournemouth may feel the Arsenal forward triggered contact with goalkeeper Mark Travers.

The Cherries also had a goal disallowed at 2-0 down when Dominic Solanke was adjudged to have fouled David Raya before Antoine Semenyo turned into an empty net.

A lengthy VAR check followed both decisions but Arteta refused to comment on either incident, suggesting he had not seen them back yet.

"The honest answer is I haven't seen any of the incidents because I knew you were going to ask me," he added.

"They said do you want to see it and I said no so I can give you an honest answer!"

All 10 of Arsenal’s outfield starters attempted at least one shot in this game, the first time this has happened in a Premier League game for the Gunners since January 2022 against Burnley.

Gabriel Magalhaes almost got in the act but his strike was ruled out late on for offside, before Rice managed to add gloss to a dominant performance.

Rice was playing for West Ham last season as Arsenal capitulated in the title race against Man City, though the England international is hoping for a different outcome this time around.

"I wasn't here last year but I can sense that we are embracing it," the Arsenal midfielder told TNT Sports as Man City prepare to host Wolves later on Saturday.

"Man City are a machine and they don't lose many. Anything can happen in football. Surprises can happen and miracles can happen and we just have to stay focused."

Arsenal will continue to go about their business in hope of Man City slipping up, the Gunners have won 14 of their 16 Premier League games in 2024 (D1 L1), scoring 51 goals and conceding just eight in reply.

Indeed, the Gunners have won the most points in the competition since the turn of the year (43), but Arteta's side remain reliant on favours from elsewhere in the title race.

While internally Iraola had been under no pressure at Vitality Stadium, the noise externally was growing after the Cherries suffered a late defeat to Wolves last weekend, but they bounced back in style against a relegation rival.

It was actually Burnley who went ahead in the 11th minute when Charlie Taylor opened his account for the club on his 198th appearance with a sweet strike, but Antoine Semenyo’s fine solo effort ensured it was all square at half-time.

No winner appeared likely in the pouring rain with Clarets goalkeeper James Trafford impressive, but after the visitors gave away possession inside their own half, Billing spotted the England Under-21 international off his line and chipped the ball home from range.

Bournemouth did require VAR to intervene after Jay Rodriguez found the net late on but – after six minutes of deliberation by David Coote at Stockley Park – it was eventually ruled out for offside to give Bournemouth all three points.

With Cherries captain Neto out injured, a Premier League debut was given to on-loan Inter Milan goalkeeper Andrei Radu, but the majority of action early on was in the visitors’ half.

Poor passes by Billing and Marcus Tavernier halted dangerous Bournemouth attacks before the latter had a free-kick punched over by Clarets stopper Trafford.

It was a superb long-range pass by Trafford that helped get Vincent Kompany’s side on the front foot again and they took the lead through an unlikely source in the 11th minute.

From Burnley’s second corner in quick succession, Johann Gudmundsson’s delivery was only partially cleared by Illia Zabarnyi to Dara O’Shea, who cushioned a header into the path of Taylor and the left-back rifled home with a sweet strike from 22 yards to score for the first time since 2015.

Burnley’s joy should have been shortlived when the recalled Semenyo was played in down the right and picked out Tavernier, but the left winger side-footed into the ground and over from six yards.

Semenyo had been Bournemouth’s brightest attacker though and it was no surprise when he conjured up the equaliser.

Taylor was at fault after Semenyo robbed the goalscorer of possession before he waltzed into the area and steered a left-footed shot through O’Shea’s legs to level after 22 minutes.

Buoyed by the equaliser, Bournemouth finished the half strongly with Chris Mepham’s header tipped over by Trafford, but it remained 1-1 at the break.

Kompany had seen enough and introduced Rodriguez for the anonymous Zeki Amdouni during the interval, although it failed to have the desired effect.

Trafford continued to be the busier of the two goalkeepers, but punched away another Tavernier cross before he blocked Semenyo’s close-range effort to keep his side in it.

Sander Berge was thrown on by Kompany on the hour mark with the match appearing to peter out to a draw, but Billing had other ideas.

After Vitinho gave away the ball under pressure by the halfway line, Billing controlled and lobbed over Trafford from 40 yards before he displayed a T-shirt which read ‘we are the children, we are the world’, in celebration.

The drama was not over there with Rodriguez able to find the net in the 89th minute although the assistant referee immediately put his flag up.

VAR reviewed the incident and after a six-minute check it was finally deemed offside before Bournemouth were indebted to Radu, who saved two efforts by Berge deep into stoppage-time to secure a priceless win for Iraola’s men.

The Red Devils were embarrassed by Andoni Iraola’s ever-improving Cherries just three days on from beating Chelsea with arguably their best performance of the season.

Star turn Dominic Solanke scored a smart fifth-minute opener and hit the post in an alarming first-half display by United that was followed by a complete capitulation after the break.

Substitute Philip Billing headed Bournemouth further ahead and Marcos Senesi added another from a corner in front of the elated, open-mouthed away support.

A number of United fans left after the third and a VAR review prevented Dango Ouattara adding another on an afternoon that ended with widespread boos from the Old Trafford faithful.

This result is sure to heap pressure on boss Ten Hag, whose decision to replace Anthony Martial with Rasmus Hojlund was cheered on a dark day that could soon be compounded.

United’s European ambitions are hanging by a thread heading into Tuesday’s final Champions League group game at home to Bayern Munich. A trip to high-flying rivals Liverpool follows next weekend.

The 11th loss in all competition of the campaign – and 18th of 2023 – was on the cards from the outset.

United stumbled out of the blocks and were breathing a sigh of relief when Solanke went down in the box as Andre Onana attempted to reach a back pass with 46 seconds on the clock.

The VAR decided against awarding a penalty after reviewing the incident, but the hosts’ sloppiness was quickly punished.

Having won the ball and kept it smartly, Bruno Fernandes’ clipped ball from deep on the left side of their own half was picked off by Lewis Cook.

The Cherries midfielder nipped in ahead of Scott McTominay, burst forward and sent a low ball that Solanke smartly took past Onana with a delicate six-yard finish.

United were stunned and quickly looked to make amends, but Harry Maguire’s looping header was the best they could muster despite controlling possession.

Bournemouth were as defensively organised as they were committed and threatened to land another first-half blow on several occasions.

Marcus Tavernier saw a low attempt saved and found the net in the 24th minute, turning in from close range after Onana stopped a header from what proved to be an offside Solanke.

Illia Zabarnyi saw an effort from a corner turned around the post by Diogo Dalot as the away side pushed for another, going onto hit the woodwork as half-time approached.

McTominay saw a first-time pass cut out and Solanke was slipped in to get away a low shot that beat Onana but came back off the far post.

The striker would have got away another in stoppage-time was it not for a key Maguire challenge at the end of a Bournemouth break. Little wonder there were boos at the interval.

The lack of United changes at half-time was more surprising and there were huge cheers when Hojlund replaced ineffective Martial in the 56th minute.

There had been groans during the forward’s involvement towards the end of the opening period and Ten Hag gave him a pat on the back after traipsing around the pitch to the dugout.

Hojlund was swiftly booked for waving an imaginary card and soon expressed more frustration when Dalot struck into the side-netting rather than crossing.

The hosts’ mood soon worsened. Bournemouth won possession and Solanke darted forwards, before playing wide for Tavernier to lift a cross to the far post where the towering Billing headed home.

The 68th-minute goal was followed by a another in the 73rd and led to some of the 72,427 in attendance making an early exit.

Tavernier’s corner from the right was good but made to look a lot better by awful defending, with Senesi all too easily able to get away a header that beat Onana.

Ten Hag made a triple change but it was too little, too late.

As if the afternoon was not damaging enough, Fernandes’ moaning at the referee earned him a a booking that rules him out of next Sunday’s trip to Liverpool.

The VAR saved United from conceding a fourth in stoppage-time, with Ouattara adjudged to have handled when bundling past the hapless hosts.

Wales international Brooks scored one goal and provided two assists as the Cherries racked up their biggest FA Cup win against a Football League side since beating Bristol Rovers 6-1 in the 1927-28 season.

Both teams made five changes from their weekend line-ups but that did not stop Bournemouth making light work of their Championship visitors to move into the last 16 for only the third time since 1989.

Andoni Iraola’s Premier League side stormed into a 3-0 lead with less than a quarter of an hour gone as Swansea’s defence completely capitulated on the south coast.

The Cherries took the lead in the seventh minute when defender Lloyd Kelly came up from the back to find himself unmarked to hook Brooks’ free-kick into the roof of the net.

Three minutes later Brooks broke free down the right before pulling the ball back for Alex Scott to make it 2-0.

Kyle Naughton hit the post for the visitors before Luis Sinisterra scored Bournemouth’s third goal with a confident finish into the far corner after Swansea goalkeeper Andrew Fisher had passed the ball straight to Scott.

The irrepressible Brooks had to wait until 10 minutes before half-time to get the goal he fully deserved after keeping himself onside to latch onto Dominic Solanke’s slide-rule pass before side-footing past the helpless Fisher.

Top-scorer Solanke, who had already fired wide from another Brooks free-kick, grabbed the home side’s fifth a minute before half-time after more dreadful defending from the visitors.

Sinisterra played in a teasing low cross from the left wing and Solanke was left with the freedom of the penalty area to side-foot his 14th goal of the season from 10 yards out.

Liam Cullen was unlucky not to reduce the deficit in first-half stoppage-time as his shot was acrobatically tipped over the bar by Bournemouth’s stand-in goalkeeper Mark Travers.

It was the first time the Cherries had been 5-0 up at the interval since beating non-league Margate 11-0 in an FA Cup first round tie in 1971.

Iraola rested Solanke for the second half but his replacement Kieffer Moore could have made it 6-0 within seconds of coming on after narrowly failing to get on the end of James Hill’s floated cross.

Moore came close again 15 minutes from time when his effort from midway inside the Swansea penalty area was deflected behind for a corner, while Milos Kerkez also slotted wide as the hosts failed to add to their tally.

The only negative for Bournemouth, already missing several key defenders, was losing defender James Hill to injury after he landed awkwardly midway through the second half.

Lockyer was attended to by paramedics and staff in the second half, when the score was 1-1 with the clock paused at 65 minutes.

The defender was removed from the field of play on a stretcher surrounded by the medical team, and there was a standing ovation from the crowd.

A post shared by Luton Town Football Club (@lutontown)

After the players were taken off, the Premier League confirmed the match had been abandoned.

A statement from the Premier League read: “The Premier League match between AFC Bournemouth and Luton Town FC has been abandoned due to a player medical incident.

“Our thoughts are with Tom Lockyer and all players involved in today’s match.”

Rob Edwards saw his side end their 10-match run without a league victory in dramatic fashion, Morris arriving at the far post to turn home Cauley Woodrow’s deep cross and stun Andoni Iraola in the away dugout.

Bournemouth had been excellent in the first half against a home side that looked creatively clueless, but it took until after the interval to make their breakthrough via James Tavernier’s low shot.

Luton rallied and Jordan Clark levelled to snatch what at that stage looked like being a critical point in their fight against the drop.

Then came Morris’s late intervention, knocking the ball past a stunned Neto in the visitors’ goal to spark joyous scenes.

After an even opening, the early chances fell to Bournemouth and Tavernier, first wrapping his left foot devilishly around a free-kick and sending it crashing against Thomas Kaminski’s post, then drilling wide from the edge of the box.

They hit the woodwork for a second time when Justin Kluivert’s low shot beat Kaminski but not the post.

The Dutch winger’s next effort – cutting in off the left after being played in down the channel by Antoine Semenyo before letting fly with a high, swinging drive – cleared the crossbar by a whisker as the visitors made plain their greater technical craft.

Bournemouth had won four of their last five in contrast to Luton’s 10-game winless streak and as the half progressed, they took near total control.

The advanced three of Kluivert, Semenyo and Tavernier were finding and exploiting space with ease, whilst Edwards’ side saw their own attacking focal point Ross Barkley squeezed out.

Tahith Chong summed up Luton’s creative blind spot when, late in a desperately-poor first half, he attempted a wild volley that clobbered against the roof of the stand behind Neto’s goal.

The situation called urgently for a response and what came next was a radically-improved Luton tempo. Three times in the first five minutes of the second period Neto was called upon to save, most impressively when Morris was denied with a fine fingertip reach.

Whatever cheer it had brought Edwards was wiped out in a flash.

Kluivert picked the ball up wide on right and, after dashing infield, laid it square to Tavernier. He calmly let the ball roll across his body before sending it flying like an arrow wide of Kaminski’s reach into the bottom corner.

Luton’s optimism might have been punctured but instead they pressed on. Morris skipped an effort along ground and against the post with Neto rooted to the spot, with Clark’s ferocious follow-up blocked, then Alfie Doughty got in down the left of the box and made the goalkeeper save.

Their equaliser with 17 minutes to go was deserved and Clark started and finished the move himself, running across the pitch from left to right, then feeding it to Reece Burke, who lost his duel.

The ball broke kindly for Clark who had gambled and continued his run and his reward was Luton’s leveller, lashed brilliantly into the corner.

A draw might have been fair result but Morris and Luton had other ideas at the death.

Cherries manager Howe has been joined by assistant Jason Tindall, technical director Richard Hughes and chief executive Neill Blake in accepting a reduced salary.

The pay cuts for the senior quartet were taken voluntarily, Bournemouth said.

The club announced a number of staff have been placed on furlough - the UK Government scheme that will pay employees 80 per cent of wages, up to £2,500 per month.

Bournemouth said they would top up salaries to ensure those furloughed receive their usual full pay.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, Bournemouth announced: "These measures have been taken to safeguard the financial stability of the club during what is such an uncertain period, not only in football but for businesses in all industries across the world."

Those on furlough come from roles that "have been affected by the closure of Vitality Stadium and the club's other sites", Bournemouth said, explaining they would be on leave from the club for a minimum of three weeks.

The club said: "We are also offering training schemes to allow furloughed staff to continue their development while on leave, and we look forward to welcoming these employees back to their roles as soon it is possible for the club to fully function again.

"In this time of great uncertainty, our thoughts are with those who are affected by this virus and those who are caring for them."

The Premier League announced on Saturday there were two positive results from different clubs during the second round of COVID-19 testing that included 996 players and staff.

Medical confidentiality means the identity of the individual, who will now self-isolate for a seven-day period, will not be disclosed by Bournemouth. 

The club also stated that, in line with the regulations put in place by the Premier League, the training ground remains a "safe working environment".

"Bournemouth can confirm that one of its players has tested positive for Covid-19, following the club’s second round of testing," a statement from Bournemouth read.

"Medical confidentiality means the player’s name will not be disclosed, and the club asks for this to be respected.

"In line with Premier League protocols regarding positive tests, he will self-isolate for a period of seven days before being tested again at a later date.

"Following strict adherence of the Premier League’s return to training regulations, the club’s training ground remains a safe working environment for players and backroom staff, who will continue to be tested for Covid-19 twice per week."

There were six positive outcomes in the first round of tests carried out on May 17 and 18. Burnley assistant Ian Woan and Watford defender Adrian Mariappa were confirmed to be among the half-dozen.

The Premier League has been suspended since March due to the coronavirus pandemic, though the target is for games to resume in mid-June.

Teams have returned to training in small groups, though no contact is permitted due to social distancing. However, some players have declined to participate due to health concerns.

Decisions made by UEFA and CONMEBOL to push back Euro 2020 and the Copa America until 2021 opened the door for domestic competition to continue longer than initially planned.

Upon announcing a four-week extension to the initially planned hiatus on Thursday, the Football Association (FA) revealed it would allow its leagues to continue beyond the June 1 deadline set out in its regulations.

The eventual run-in could prove to be heavily congested. Some Premier League teams are still competing on three fronts, others possess a game in hand, while UEFA is still hoping for a round of international matches in June.

If no games are cut out, we look at how the calendar for English teams could hypothetically shape up if competitions across Europe were able to resume following April 30.

May 2/3 - Matchday 30

May 7 - Postponed Europa League last-16 first legs and unplayed matchday 29 games

May 9/10 - Matchday 31

May 12/13/14 - FA Cup quarter-finals

May 16/17 - Matchday 32

May 19/20/21 - Champions League and Europa League last-16 second legs

May 23/24 - Matchday 33

May 26/27/28 - Champions League and Europa League quarter-final first legs

May 30/31 - Matchday 34

June 2/3/4 - Champions League and Europa League quarter-final second legs

June 6/7 - Matchday 35

June 13/14 - International week

June 20/21 - Matchday 36

June 23/24/25 - Champions League and Europa League semi-final first legs

June 27/28 - Matchday 37

June 30/July 1/2 - FA Cup semi-finals

July 4 - Matchday 38

July 7/8/9 - Champions League and Europa League semi-final second legs

July 11 - FA Cup final

July 15 - Europa League final

July 18 - Champions League final

A number of Liverpool's non-playing staff were suspended on furlough, it was announced on Saturday, leaving them free to claim 80 per cent of their wages from the United Kingdom government while the club tops up any shortfall in their pay.

Tottenham, Newcastle United, Norwich City and Bournemouth took similar action by utilising the government's furlough scheme, prompting widespread criticism of wealthy clubs opting to put further strain on public funds.

Former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy was among those to slam the quintet, describing their actions as "grotesque".

City took a divergent move on Sunday, with a club spokesperson saying in a statement: "We can confirm, following a decision by the chairman and board last week, that Manchester City will not be utilising the UK Government's Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (government funded furloughing).

"We remain determined to protect our people, their jobs and our business, whilst at the same time doing what we can to support our wider community at this most challenging time for everybody."

City are second in the Premier League table, 25 points behind Liverpool, and the league announced on Friday that play will not resume in early May as had been planned.

Premier League clubs met on Friday to discuss the prospects for completing the season, and the possibility of players taking a 30 per cent wage reduction was also discussed.

Wales international Brooks made the most of a rare start this season by scoring one goal and making two more as the Cherries cruised into round five on Thursday night.

Iraola said: “The wing position is where we have more options and they are all playing really well.

“Sometimes it is difficult to leave players out. David played really well tonight.

“We were really clinical and started very strongly. It was strange to score five goals in the first half.

“We did not want to start slowly as we have in other cup games this season and were really impressive.

“Our number one priority was to be in the next round. We needed a very good performance after Sunday’s game against Liverpool, where we didn’t finish well.

“We have done our job and we are in the last 16 so let’s see what we get in the draw.”

The Cherries took the lead in the seventh minute when defender Lloyd Kelly came up from the back and found himself unmarked to hook Brooks’ free-kick into the roof of the net.

Three minutes later Brooks broke free down the right before pulling the ball back for Alex Scott to make it 2-0.

Kyle Naughton hit the post for the visitors before Luis Sinisterra scored Bournemouth’s third goal with a confident finish into the far corner, after Swansea goalkeeper Andrew Fisher had passed the ball straight to Scott.

Brooks had to wait until 10 minutes before half-time to get the goal he fully deserved after keeping himself onside to latch onto Dominic Solanke’s slide-rule pass before side-footing past the helpless Fisher.

Top scorer Solanke, who had already fired wide from another Brooks free-kick, grabbed the home side’s fifth a minute before half-time after more dreadful defending from the visitors.

Sinisterra played in a teasing low cross from the left wing and Solanke was left with the freedom of the penalty area to side-foot his 14th goal of the season from 10 yards out.

Swansea manager Luke Williams said: “It was a horrible night for us.

“I apologised to the players because I tried to set the team up to give a problem to the opposition. It is a cup game and we have to try to find a way to win.

“But I put the balance wrong, with too many players in advanced positions and then in the turnover there is not enough bodies to stem the flow of the attack, and the opposition were very good.

“In the second half we had more bodies back, but then it was very difficult for us to get near their goal. We tried to limit the damage because the scoreline was too heavy.”

Delap, who is the son of former Stoke City favourite Rory, was an unused substitute for City's opening 3-1 Premier League win at Wolves.

With Sergio Aguero sidelined due to a knee injury and Gabriel Jesus rested as the only remaining specialist striker in Guardiola's squad, the 17-year-old was handed a start at the Etihad Stadium on Thursday.

He duly opened the scoring in the 18th minute, showing pace and power to latch on to Phil Foden's throughball and clip a brilliant left-footed finish into the top right corner.

Foden netted the winner 15 minutes from time after Sam Surridge found a quick response to Delap's strike.

Speaking at a post-match news conference, Guardiola pointed to the example of Foden, who also made his debut at 17 but had to be patient in his quest to become a first-team regular.

"We see in training how good a finisher he is," the City manager said of Delap. Now he has to be calm and keep working.

"We are delighted with his performance - he played really well.

"The situation that we have right now is we have just 13 players available in the first team. We need players from the academy, not just in training sessions.

"With the problems we have up front, Liam will stay with us. We'll use him but we cannot forget how we spoke about Phil in previous seasons."

Delap shone brightest in a youthful City line-up, that featured Eric Garcia and Taylor Harwood-Bellis at centre-back, Tommy Doyle in midfield and playmaker Adrian Bernabe at left-back.

The latter endured a miserable outing and left the field on a stretcher before half-time.

Afterwards, attention turned back towards Delap and Guardiola was keen to praise City's academy production line, which churns under the watchful eye of former England winger Jason Wilcox.

"He is just 17, he has a lot of things to improve. They need their own time, we cannot anticipate the process of each young player," he added.

"Congratulations to the academy for all the guys that are involved, scouting to recruit these players and all the managers in the academy.

"At the end I have the finished product, the last steps, but before there are a lot of players working for this. Jason Wilcox is now the boss in the academy who helps us to have these players."

Having stayed in contention for a fourth consecutive EFL Cup success, City host in-form Leicester City in the Premier League on Sunday.

Wales international Brooks scored one goal and provided two assists as the Cherries racked up their biggest FA Cup win against a Football League side since beating Bristol Rovers 6-1 in the 1927-28 season.

Both teams made five changes from their weekend line-ups but that did not stop Bournemouth making light work of their Championship visitors to move into the last 16 for only the third time since 1989.

Andoni Iraola’s Premier League side stormed into a 3-0 lead with less than a quarter of an hour gone as Swansea’s defence completely capitulated on the south coast.

The Cherries took the lead in the seventh minute when defender Lloyd Kelly came up from the back to find himself unmarked to hook Brooks’ free-kick into the roof of the net.

Three minutes later Brooks broke free down the right before pulling the ball back for Alex Scott to make it 2-0.

Kyle Naughton hit the post for the visitors before Luis Sinisterra scored Bournemouth’s third goal with a confident finish into the far corner after Swansea goalkeeper Andrew Fisher had passed the ball straight to Scott.

The irrepressible Brooks had to wait until 10 minutes before half-time to get the goal he fully deserved after keeping himself onside to latch onto Dominic Solanke’s slide-rule pass before side-footing past the helpless Fisher.

Top-scorer Solanke, who had already fired wide from another Brooks free-kick, grabbed the home side’s fifth a minute before half-time after more dreadful defending from the visitors.

Sinisterra played in a teasing low cross from the left wing and Solanke was left with the freedom of the penalty area to side-foot his 14th goal of the season from 10 yards out.

Liam Cullen was unlucky not to reduce the deficit in first-half stoppage-time as his shot was acrobatically tipped over the bar by Bournemouth’s stand-in goalkeeper Mark Travers.

It was the first time the Cherries had been 5-0 up at the interval since beating non-league Margate 11-0 in an FA Cup first round tie in 1971.

Iraola rested Solanke for the second half but his replacement Kieffer Moore could have made it 6-0 within seconds of coming on after narrowly failing to get on the end of James Hill’s floated cross.

Moore came close again 15 minutes from time when his effort from midway inside the Swansea penalty area was deflected behind for a corner, while Milos Kerkez also slotted wide as the hosts failed to add to their tally.

The only negative for Bournemouth, already missing several key defenders, was losing defender James Hill to injury after he landed awkwardly midway through the second half.

The Cherries remain winless in nine Premier League contests this season but got off to a bright start on Saturday after Dominic Solanke fired them to a 1-0 half-time lead.

It all began to unravel after Matheus Cunha netted a quick equaliser after the restart and the hosts were left to defend for the majority of the second period with 10 men after Lewis Cook was shown red.

The hosts looked to have clung on for a point until Sasa Kalajdzic fired in a late winner.

O’Neil said: “It’s just a really big win for us to win on the road, second time this year.

“The fixtures have been very tough for us, I think we’ve had the toughest run of fixtures.

“We’re right up there at the top with the hardest runs, so to have gotten 11 points so far is really good, to win away from home against a good side that will cause teams problems is really good.

“But it’s not about me or returning to AFC Bournemouth, just a really good win for a group that are making progress and working extremely hard.

“Honestly, I feel no different to when we beat Manchester City, when we beat Everton. It feels exactly the same.

“I have huge respect for everybody at AFC Bournemouth, they gave me an opportunity to manage a Premier League football team.

“Thankfully I managed to go six unbeaten straight away, which got me on a decent run. But there’s nothing in it for me. It’s not that at all.”

Solanke’s strike lifted the spirits of supporters sorely in need of a boost, but the mood soured after Cook’s needless red card, issued following a VAR review that showed him headbutting Hwang Hee-chan to force his team into playing short-handed from the 54th minute.

To their credit the hosts held on until late, when Cherries keeper Neto’s loose short pass to Philip Billing was intercepted, ultimately allowing Hwang to set up Kalajdzic.

Despite the worrying run of results, Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola brushed aside speculation he might be running out of rope in the role he’s occupied since O’Neil’s exit.

Asked if he was concerned about his position, the Spaniard replied: “I’m not. Nobody should be concerned about Andoni Iraola, I’m concerned about AFC Bournemouth winning games.

“It’s like this and it has to be like this.

“I haven’t talked (to the board), but it’s not a matter of me or my situation. It’s a matter of how can we solve this the best way?”

The Scottish Football Association board has approved the club’s dual interest dispensation request.

Hibs will now progress with an offer from the Black Knight group which owns a majority stake in Bournemouth and a 30 per cent stake in French Ligue 1 side Lorient.

The consortium, led by American Bill Foley, is reported to have offered to invest £6million into the cinch Premiership club, which is largely owned by the American-based family of late chairman Ron Gordon.

The SFA revealed the approval was subject to certain conditions, including that Black Knight’s shareholding does not exceed 29.99 per cent and that the agreement does not preclude Hibs participating in European competition because of dual interests.

A Hibs statement read: “The club now has an agreement in principle with Black Knight Football Club for minority investment into Hibernian FC.

“The investment proposal will now be shared and ratified at the Club’s Annual General Meeting, which will occur in February.”

The SFA’s articles on dual interest state that nobody who is involved in the management or administration of a club, or has any power to manage or influence the management or administration of a club should be able to do so for another club.

The agreement came after several meetings between Hibs and the SFA.

The World Cup-winner curled a shot into the top corner after 31 minutes of a tight encounter at the Etihad Stadium to secure a 1-0 win and three more points.

Eddie Howe’s men had travelled in hope after last weekend’s opening 5-1 drubbing of Aston Villa, but left empty-handed after the hosts summoned up commendable stamina in the wake of their midweek UEFA Super Cup triumph in Athens on Wednesday.

Ange Postecoglou oversaw a thrilling first win as Tottenham manager as Pape Sarr’s strike and a Lisandro Martinez own goal settled a pulsating clash with Manchester United.

Spurs, whose struggles in the second half of last season have been compounded by home-grown star Harry Kane’s recent switch to Bayern Munich, proved too good for a sub-par United on the day.

Former Celtic boss Postecoglou’s influence has borne early fruit and his new-look side sealed a fine 2-0 win thanks to Sarr’s effort and a late Martinez own goal.

Liverpool survived Mo Salah’s penalty miss and Alexis Mac Allister’s red card to surge to a 3-1 Premier League victory over Bournemouth.

The Cherries took a third-minute lead through Antoine Semenyo, but Luis Diaz levelled before Salah converted the rebound after Neto had repelled his spot-kick.

Summer signing Mac Allister’s untimely departure had little impact as Diogo Jota secured the points.

Solly March’s double helped Brighton climb to the top of the table after the 3pm kick-offs following a fine 4-1 win at Wolves.

Goals from Kaoru Mitoma and Pervis Estupinan put the Seagulls in charge, and March struck twice before substitute Hwang Hee-chan pulled one back for the home side, who had Matheus Nunes sent off for a second bookable offence at the death.

Bryan Mbeumo also scored twice to help Brentford to an impressive 3-0 victory at Brentford.

Yoane Wissa opened the scoring and after defender Tim Ream had been dismissed for two yellow card offences, Mbeumo converted the resulting penalty before adding a second in stoppage time.

The 33-year-old joined the Cherries in 2014 and has made 178 appearances, scoring 38 goals.

He has won two promotions to the Premier League and helped them stay in the top division on five occasions, but will depart the Vitality Stadium this summer.

AFC Bournemouth chief executive Neill Blake said on the club’s official website: “One of our longest serving players, we wish Junior nothing but the best for what comes next.

“He’s played a massive part in helping the club get to where we are today and his talent and dedication has been an inspiration for those around him.

“We appreciate all of his hard work both on and off the pitch, with his excellent work in the community also a huge testament to his character.”

Stanislas is the latest exit confirmed by the Cherries, following the departures of Jefferson Lerma and Jack Stacey.

Reds top scorer Salah is set to miss his country’s next two games at the tournament in Ivory Coast after suffering a muscle injury in Thursday’s 2-2 draw with Ghana.

Premier League leaders Liverpool initially struggled to create in the absence of their talisman during Sunday’s game at Bournemouth, but moved five points clear at the top thanks to a crushing 4-0 win earned by second-half doubles from Darwin Nunez and Diogo Jota.

Klopp feels it “makes sense” for Salah to fly back to Merseyside from AFCON.

“That’s the plan,” the German said following victory at Vitality Stadium.

“If that’s already decided 100 per cent, I don’t know. But that’s the plan.

“However long he’s out, probably everybody sees it like this, it makes sense that he’s doing the rehab with us or with our people. If that’s written in stone already, I don’t know.

“I spoke with him directly after, the night when it happened. Since then he’s in contact with our doctor. I think he will be back.”

Following successive draws against Mozambique and Ghana, Egypt face Cape Verde on Monday evening seeking to progress from Group B.

Asked if Salah would go back to the tournament should his country reach the knockout stages, Klopp said: “I would say if Egypt qualifies for the final, if he’s fit before the final, then probably yes.

“Why not? That’s clear. It’s the tournament.

“Ivory Coast I’m sure is a wonderful country but we have no people from us there and their people have to take care of the people who are playing, so let’s see.”

Liverpool overcame a slow start on a soggy south coast afternoon to run out resounding victors against the Cherries in their first league match of the season without 14-goal forward Salah.

Nunez broke the deadlock four minutes into the second period and then completed the scoring in added time following Jota’s quick-fire brace as the Reds fully capitalised on a weekend off for second-placed Manchester City.

“We had the oppositive of a good start,” said Klopp. “We put ourselves under pressure.

“It’s about winning the game in the end and, as long as you stay in the game, pretty much anything that happens in the game is allowed.

“Today, step by step, we found a way in the game and won it.”

In a dramatic home opener, Liverpool needed goals from Luis Diaz, Mo Salah and Diogo Jota to respond to a third-minute strike from Antoine Semenyo, and played the final half an hour with 10 men after Mac Allister’s home debut was cut short in the 58th minute.

The World Cup winner was shown a straight red by referee Thomas Bramall after catching Ryan Christie with a high boot, but the decision looked harsh.

“I think the amount of times I was asked about it shows it’s worth discussing again, which we will probably do,” Klopp said. “I asked Macca and he said, ‘I touched him but not really’. That’s all he told me.

“After the game I saw it back. I think if you have a list of points, what we need to give a red card, besides contact there’s nothing else, no other boxes ticked.

“It’s a decision we all agree if he gives a yellow card VAR would not overturn it and if he gives a red card VAR will not overturn it because contact means it’s not a clear and obvious mistake.

“But now the punishment, 40 minutes with 10 men is already punishment enough. But let’s see, we have to talk to the authorities.”

Liverpool were leading 2-1 when Mac Allister was sent off, but far from retreating, they seemed fired up by the sense of injustice, with Joto scoring the third four minutes later.

That all came after a torrid start from Klopp’s side. A bright and energetic Bournemouth side had already seen a Jaidon Anthony goal ruled out for offside following a defensive mix-up when Semenyo punished more lax play by drilling in the opening goal after only three minutes.

Liverpool soon had another scare with goalkeeper Alisson felling Anthony on the edge of the box after misplacing a pass, his punishment limited to a yellow card with Ibrahima Konate covering.

“The start of the game was obviously not how we wanted it,” Klopp said. “We conceded the first goal after a minute and then it was offside so you think that’s the wake-up call we needed.

“Then we concede another goal two minutes later and then there’s a yellow card for our goalie so it’s not what you need but you are working with human beings so you have to figure it out.”

An improvised finish from Diaz levelled it, and Liverpool led after Salah tucked in the rebound from his own missed penalty in the 36th minute, his 187th Liverpool goal taking him to fifth all-time above Steven Gerrard.

The spot-kick was awarded when summer signing Dominik Szoboszlai made the most of a dangling leg from Joe Rothwell to go down in the box.

It looked soft, and came after Bournemouth had a penalty shout of their own when, with the score still 1-0 to the visitors, former Liverpool striker Dominic Solanke went down when sandwiched by Virgil van Dijk and Andy Robertson.

“In both cases I wouldn’t call it a penalty,” said Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola. “It wasn’t clear and obvious. It has to be something that affects the game and is clear. These are difficult decisions…

“I think we started really well. We had a disallowed goal, we created other chances and after they scored and they pushed we had to defend and I think we did pretty well during the first half because they were putting pressure on and I was happy with the performance.

“In this kind of match you need some kinds of moments to go your way, key things that took us far from the points, especially the penalty. We were competing and this penalty was important for them.”