Watch the Bournemouth vs Leicester City highlights as Abdul Fatawu scores a delightful goal in extra-time to send the Premier League side crashing out.
Bournemouth 0-1 Leicester City (AET) Highlights
Leicester City, who are flying high at the top of the Championship, met midtable Premier League side Bournemouth in the fifth round of the FA Cup. Despite the two sides being in different leagues, neutrals struggled to pick a winner between two sides evenly matched on paper.
The visitors came to the south coast on the back of a disappointing back-to-back league defeats, including a defeat to promotion rivals Leeds United. Despite that defeat, Leicester are still six points clear of both Leeds and Ipswich, who are 2nd and 3rd respectively.
Bournemouth are 14th in the Premier League, eight points off the drop zone. Their season started shaky, but under Andoni Iraola they’ve picked up this season and look set for another season in the Premier League. Despite improving since the start of the season, they came into this game without a win in five.
Both sides made changes for this game. The visitors, with their promotion battle in the back of their mind, rested key players but still fielded a strong side for the cup tie.
The hosts didn’t make as many changes to their side, suggesting they fancy their chances in the competition this season. One noticeable change was Enes Ünal starting, making his full debut after joining the club in January.
Bournemouth vs Leicester City Review
The first half saw both sides feeling each other out as they both looked to take control of the game. It was Leicester who had the first early chances in the game.
Ünal was involved straight away, drawing a foul from Conor Coady in the opening minutes. The striker also saw his first attempt on goal go over the bar. As the first half carried on, Ünal continued to be involved in the game, eventually picking up a yellow card. Iraola opted to substitute the striker at half-time, bringing an end to a promising first start for the club.
Leicester City ended the first half the strongest of the two. Within the space of three minutes, Mark Travers was forced into two saves and Marc Albrighton hit the post.
Mark Travers, what a save 🔥
— AFC Bournemouth 🍒 (@afcbournemouth) February 27, 2024
The second half was more of the same for both sides, with both sides looking to take control of the game. Bournemouth created the most chances (5) in the second half but failed to score the important goal, despite hitting the post in the second half.
Kelechi Iheanacho was introduced in the second half as the visitors looked to break the deadlock. The Nigerian struggled to make an impact in the second half.
The game finished as it started, 0-0, which meant both teams were in for an unwanted extra half hour.
After over 100 minutes of football, it was Leicester City who finally broke the deadlock in the game. Abdul Fatawu scored in the 105th minute to put the Championship side ahead. Fatawu scored a stunner, smashing the ball into the top corner and helping Leicester put one foot in the quarter-finals.
📸 💙 pic.twitter.com/lp5NSjeSlv
— Leicester City (@LCFC) February 27, 2024
The visitors managed to hold on to their slim lead and claim their place in the FA Cup quarter-finals.
What Next For Both Sides?
Leicester City will be hoping they can carry this momentum from the cup into their promotion push. Their promotion is still in their hands, which will give them confidence.
For the hosts, they’ll be disappointed they’ve missed the chance to reach the quarter-final this season. They’ll need to refocus quickly for their next league game as they look to avoid being dragged into a relegation battle.
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