Club record unbeaten run ends in defeat at Bournemouth

Goals from Antoine Semenyo and Evanilson consigned Pep Guardiola’s champions to a first loss in 33 outings in the top-flight, a run stretching back to 6 December 2023.

Semenyo’s opener came less than ten minutes after the kick-off before Evanilson doubled Bournemouth’s advantage just after the hour mark.

City, ravaged by injury issues, never gave up and restored hope when Josko Gvardiol scored a brilliant header in the 82nd minute.

We threw everything at Bournemouth as the clock ticked down but an equaliser proved elusive on an ultimately frustrating afternoon.

It means our club record unbeaten run will stand at 32 Premier League games.

The result also signals the end of the best 100% record in English top tier history, with City victorious in our previous 14 meetings with Bournemouth at this level.

What happened

An injury-hit City were boosted by the return of club captain Kyle Walker after almost a month sidelined and the news that Manuel Akanji was fit to start after missing the midweek Carabao Cup defeat at Tottenham Hotspur due to an injury in the warm up.

Pep Guardiola‘s side went into the game with a 100% record in 14 Premier League meetings with Bournemouth - not that the Catalan thought that would have an impact on this clash with Andoni Iraola’s entertaining outfit.

Ederson had to be at his brilliant best in the very first minute of the game as an energetic Cherries side won the ball on the halfway line and rushed forward.

The Brazilian got low to deny Antoine Semenyo before jumping up to divert Justin Kluivert’s  follow up out with his foot.

However, he was powerless to stop Semenyo’s turn and shot in the ninth minute after excellent work down the left from Milos Kerkez.

It was little more than our hosts deserved after a bright start but it did act as the catalyst for City to take control of possession.

WATCH: Short highlights: Bournemouth 2-1 City

By the midway point of the first half, Bournemouth appeared drained of their early vim and vigour and City were undoubtedly on top.

A direct Matheus Nunes run down the left was the next moment to rip the hosts’ defence apart, with the Portuguese man eventually pulling the ball back to his compatriot Bernardo.

The No.20 pulled the trigger and would surely have equalised if not for a sliding block from Kerkez.

Haaland’s first major opening came in the 37th minute was also the last chance of a topsy-turvy first half.

The Norwegian chested down a floated Nunes cross before smashing a left footed effort just wide of the near post.

Just as in the first half, City again needed a superb Ederson save to deny the hosts inside the first minute of the second period.

It was striker Evanilson who shot from close range this time but our No.31 made himself big to turn the ball behind.

While often lauded for his revolutionary skills with the ball at his feet, Ederson‘s shot stopping ability is also amongst the very best in the world.

We sparked into life from that moment, with Nunes again beating his marker down the right before teeing up Foden.

Stepping on to the ball about 12 yards out, the Academy graduate dragged his shot agonisingly beyond the far post.

While Bournemouth were pinned back for much of the afternoon, they carried a threat on the break throughout.

And it was a quick move from back to front that saw them double their advantage, with full-back Kerkez whipping in a cross that Evanilson was at full stretch to poke home.

The hosts should have added another a few minutes later, with Marcus Tavernier curling a shot against the post before Adam Smith skied the rebound.

However, City remained spirited and fought to gain a footing in the match.

With less than 10 minutes remaining, Josko Gvardiol rose highest to meet Ilkay Gundogan‘s cross.

His header proved too powerful for Mark Travers in the Bournemouth goal who succeeded only in pushing the ball into the roof of his net.

That ignited a frantic finish as we did our utmost to score again.

Jeremy Doku was a late introduction to the game and the Belgian thought he’d earned a point moments before the game entered added time.

Cutting in from the left, he hit a low shot that Travers needed a strong wrist to turn behind..

Next up, Haaland saw a header stopped by Travers on the line before his rebound hit the post.

An absolute siege in the final moments ended with Phil Foden hammering a shot from 20 yards that shaved the post on its way behind.

That was the final action on a day that just wasn’t meant to be for the Premier League champions.

Teams

CITY XI: Ederson, Walker (C), Akanji, Ake (Lewis 73), Gvardiol, Kovacic, Gundogan (Doku 85), Bernardo, Foden, Nunes, Haaland

Subs: Ortega Moreno, De Bruyne, Savinho, Wright, Simpson-Pusey, O’Reilly, McAtee

BOURNEMOUTH XI: Travers, Smith (C), Senesi, Zabarnyi, Kerkez, Cook, Christie (Adams 66), Tavernier (Huusen 90), Kluivert (Brooks 77), Semenyo, Evanilson (Unal 77)

Subs: Dennis, J.Araujo, Hill, Philip, Aarons

Pep Guardiola reaction

“We couldn’t match up to the intensity,” he stated in his post-match press conference.

“All the situations with the long balls, we couldn’t win it.

“And when you don’t win these types of balls to Semenyo and others, our central defenders and strikers have to defend deeper.

“We struggled to make our [game], but especially for that. In the game, for many reasons, they were higher than us.

“We have players with rhythm and the other players have a lack of rhythm because we could not train due to injuries. But we knew it.”

WATCH: Players made an incredible effort - Pep

Kyle Walker reaction

“Sometimes, when we’ve got the injuries we’ve got, and the lads are tired, and they [Bournemouth] have had six days to prepare for this game and everything like that, sometimes you need to play with your heart. 

“I felt in the last ten minutes, we came back into it, but to go 2-0 down, it’s always going to be an uphill battle.”

WATCH: Walker: ‘The City fans were amazing’

What it means

City have 23 points from our first 10 games of the 2024/25 Premier League season having won seven, drawn two and lost one.

Our club record run of 32 successive Premier League matches unbeaten comes to an end.

It will go down as the sixth longest such run in the history of English football.

What’s next

City fly to Lisbon on Monday for our next clash in the league phase of the UEFA Champions League.

We face Sporting CP at 20:00 (UK) on Tuesday 5 November in the Portuguese capital.

Our next Premier League assignment sees us return to the south coast when we play Brighton & Hove Albion at 17:30 (UK) on Saturday 9 November.