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72 min: Foden’s corner is deep but the City header doesn’t trouble Bournemouth. Stones win another corner after finding himself on the right wing.
71 min: Foden plays the ball back to Kovacic, who shoots inside the D and wins a corner.
70 min: Bournemouth are going for it, with Solanke’s shot blocked before Senesi gets a yellow for pulling back Haaland in City’s half.
68 min: Bournemouth make two changes: Kluivert is replaced by Scott; Tavernier by Ouattara.
67 min: Aké blocks Smith’s attempted cross. Corner for Bournemouth … and the header at the far post is saved brilliantly by Ederson! It was Solanke who got his head on it, and the ball is stopped on the line, with the keeper well behind it.
66 min: The corner doesn’t cause any further damage to Bournemouth. Dias appeals for a handball after a Rodri ball in, but the City centre-half committed a foul himself.
65 min: Doku gets his first go at Adam Smith out on City’s left after a delightful first touch to lay the ball down … and he wins a corner after Bournemouth shirts gang up on him.
63 min: Doku – who terrorised Bournemouth earlier this season – replaces Nunes for City.
61 min: Cute passes in the middle from City before Stones breaks free on the right, but his cross into the box causes little trouble.
59 min: Excellent hold-up play from Solanke in the box sees him pass to Tavernier for a shot from the edge … but he can’t properly threaten at goal.
58 min: Smith plays a long diagonal ball to try and find Kerkez, with Akanji getting in the way.
57 min: City’s supporters belt out Blue Moon as Bournemouth finally begin to threaten the visitors.
55 min: Semenyo skips down the right wing, beating Aké and launching a fantastic cross across goal, but the shot from Tavernier doesn’t get the desired connection and is heading wide before Dias heads away. Big chance for Bournemouth.
53 min: Akanji weighs a pass perfectly for Foden in the box, who laces the ball across goal … but there’s no one on the end of it to tuck in.
52 min: Haaland shoves away Zabarnyi with incredible power before getting away a shot in the box … which is blocked by the recovering Zabarnyi.
51 min: Kluivert launches a dipping effort from range, Ederson getting down to keep it out and hold on.
50 min: Bournemouth look a touch more confident on the ball, with Semenyo doing well to evade Rodri and play the ball out to the left before Kerkez, on the overlap, fails to get his cross right.
49 min: Foden is in disbelief that he hasn’t received a free-kick after going down in the D.
46 min: There’s a little break as Dias takes a tablet and a gulp of water on the touchline.
Back we go!
City kick-off the second half … away we go.
“I wasn’t suggesting you not writing,” Andy (from below) clarifies. “Just your writing converted. I feel your fear though.”
“Now that the game is effectively over, after that goal, and it’ll be pass, pass, pass, yawn, I have an idea to run past you,” writes Andy Tuohy. “Would the Guardian ever consider AI generated text to speech in their MBMs in the style of various commentators. Ken Wolstenholme? Alan Green? Even Barry Glendenning doing his own MBM. Pathé news for that Cholmondley Warner feel. With crowd and referee sound effects for goals and penalty decisions. I’d actually pay for that.”
As the pros say, that’s above my pay-grade. But also, please no, because I’d rather like to keep doing this for as long as possible before AI eliminates my usefulness.
HALF-TIME: Bournemouth 0-1 Manchester City
Thoroughly dominant work from the champions, with Phil Foden’s goal giving them the lead at the break. John Stones has been everywhere on the pitch while, paradoxically, chillin’.
45+3 min: No dice from the set piece but they come again, with Christie launching a shot from outside the box that forces a good save from Ederson, who moves to his left to push it away.
45+2 min: Bournemouth’s supporters roar as Kerkez wins a corner after Akanji block’s the left-back’s shot.
45+1 min: Stones clips a ball into the box from the right, which is screaming out for a header – but there’s no City shirt on the end of it.
45 min: Three minutes are added on.
44 min: Foden glides and shifts, getting another shot away in the box but straight at Neto. Nonetheless, the City midfielder has been on tonight.
43 min: OK, maybe not a shooting position as Nunes plays the ball out to the right for Bernardo to cross in. Nothing comes of it.
42 min: The corner doesn’t beat the near post, but Rodri goes on to win a free-kick from a central shooting position.
41 min: Kluivert drives forward for Bournemouth to get the crowd going, but City are on the attack again not long after, winning a corner for Bernardo to take …
39 min: Foden has a go at goal with the free-kick, trying a left-footed curler … but it goes high and wide.
