Southampton still winless after losing to south coast rival Bournemouth

BOURNEMOUTH, England (AP) — Bournemouth beat Southampton 3-1 and prolonged the latter’s miserable start to the English Premier League on Monday.

Southampton remains without a win after six games and is tied on one point at the bottom of the table with Wolverhampton. The run marks the newly promoted side’s worst start to a league since 1998.

Brazilian striker Evanilson got his first goal for the Cherries and Antoine Semenyo starred, scoring one and making another as Bournemouth plundered all three goals in a rampant first 45 minutes.

“It is a goal we’ve been expecting of Evanilson,” Bournemouth assistant coach Tommy Elphick said. “He is so intelligent and makes such cute runs. We haven’t been finding him enough so I’m pleased for him.

“The first half is a representation of what we have been doing in spells. It was electric.”

Southampton still winless after losing to south coast rival Bournemouth | iNFOnews.ca — Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo celebrates scoring their side’s third goal during the Premier League match at the Vitality Stadium, Bournemouth, England, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (Adam Davy/PA via AP)

Bournemouth moved up to 11th.

The home side started well and took the lead after 17 minutes. Marcus Tavernier was the architect, cleverly taking a quick free kick that caught the Southampton defense off guard. Evanilson ran on and flicked the ball past the goalkeeper.

Former Bristol City winger Semenyo was always a threat on the right and after 32 minutes his cutback found Lewis Cook, whose shot was deflected in by Dango Ouattara.

Five minutes later, the Ghanaian international got his own name on the scoresheet with some nifty footwork before drilling an angled drive low into the far corner.

Taylor Harwood-Bellis pulled a goal back for Southampton early in the second half but it failed to spark a comeback. The home side had more of the ball in the second half but rarely threatened the Bournemouth goal.

“I didn’t recognise our team,” Southampton boss Russell Martin said. “There was no aggression or courage. They were looking around and in self-preservation mode on the pitch. I didn’t like it one bit. They showed fight in the second half but it was too late.”