Burnley vs Bournemouth. Premier League.
Turf MoorAttendance18,636.
Report and highlights as Ashley Barnes scores twice
Saturday 22 September 2018 18:04, UK
Goals from Matej Vydra, Aaron Lennon and a late double by substitute Ashley Barnes earned Burnley a comprehensive 4-0 win over Bournemouth at Turf Moor to seal their first Premier League victory of the season.
Vydra, making his first start for the club, capped it with the opening goal of the game with a clinical finish after 39 minutes before Lennon doubled Burnley's advantage just 125 seconds later.
Bournemouth dominated for large periods in the second half but they were impotent in attack and Burnley picked them off with two goals from Barnes on the counter-attack in the final 10 minutes.
The result sees Sean Dyche's side move off the foot of the table while Bournemouth's good run of form has come to an emphatic end.
Bournemouth went closest to opening the scoring when Nathan Ake's shot deflected off Ben Mee and looped over Joe Hart onto the crossbar just past the quarter-hour mark. They had another golden chance to break the deadlock soon afterwards, when Callum Wilson was inches away from connecting to a Josh King cross with the goal gaping in front of him.
After surviving a couple of hairy moments at the back, it was Burnley who took the lead late in the half. Vydra, handed a full debut after his summer move from Derby County, was on hand to finish clinically from close range after Ashley Westwood's half-volley had been diverted into his path by Ake's block.
Moments later it was 2-0. Johann Gudmundsson latched onto a dinked ball down the line by Matthew Lowton, cut inside onto his favoured left foot and whipped a devilish cross to the far post, with Lennon sliding in to convert the chance into the corner.
The visitors had a go in the second period and things might have been different for them had David Brooks scored his opportunity on the hour mark after being played through by Josh King, rather than seeing it brilliantly stopped by the onrushing Hart.
Eddie Howe threw on Junior Stanislas and Jermain Defoe in search of a route back into the game but instead it was one of Dyche's substitutes who got the on the scoresheet next, as Barnes tapped in from close range after Gudmundsson's volley had clanged off the foot of the post and into his path.
With two minutes remaining, Burnley flooded forward on the counter-attack after clearing a Bournemouth corner, with Lennon scampering onto a loose ball before teeing up Barnes to score a first-time effort beyond Asmir Begovic for the fourth and final goal of the game.
Aaron Lennon rolled back the years with an electrifying performance as Burnley ran riot against Bournemouth.
The 31-year-old grabbed the all-important second goal of the game when he slid in at the far post to convert Johann Gudmundsson's cross and he was a constant threat on the counter-attack in the second half.
Lennon played a huge role in Burnley's third when he skipped past a challenge on the left before clipping a cross to Gudmundsson, whose shot hit the post and rebounded to Barnes to score.
He then got a well-deserved assist for the fourth, showing his desire to race onto a loose ball and tee up Barnes for his second to add some gloss to the scoreline.
Sean Dyche: You've got to earn the right to win a game and we did that today. It's cleared the air for us a bit, we've had a lot going on at the start of this season, you try and speak about it and people listen of sorts, but there have been big changes for our players.
I said before maybe we were suffering from a success hangover which happens in life. We hit a pinnacle - finishing 7th in the league was a massive statement - and then the noise changes about what you're about.
We had a chat about that this week so I'm pleased with the players. I did remind them before the game, that I'm immensely proud of what this group have done over a number of years for the football club and I reminded them before the game that will never go. Now it's about moving forward and building on the progress we've made.
Eddie Howe: It was a strange game, I don't think it was a 4-0 defeat in performance, but that's the reality of the result.
We were well in the game early on, had chances to score and couldn't take them, we weren't effective in front of goal today and we've come away having conceded four goals. There are plenty of lessons for us to learn after today's game.
Both sides are in Carabao Cup action next, with Burnley travelling to League One Burton on Tuesday and Bournemouth hosting Championship side Blackburn Rovers on the same night.
In terms of the Premier League, Burnley face Cardiff City in Wales at 4pm on Super Sunday, while Bournemouth take on Crystal Palace on Monday Night Football. Both games are live on Sky Sports Premier League.
