by A stirring second-half comeback from Bournemouth inspired by Antoine Semenyo denied Luton the chance to move out of the relegation zone, three months after Tom Lockyer suffered a cardiac arrest in the original game.
It was an emotional evening for the Luton captain, who was greeted by both support teams as, in their words, “technically dead” for 2 minutes 40 seconds after collapsing on the pitch here in December. He looked to give his side a three-goal lead after Tahith Chong, Chiedozie Ogbene and Ross Barkley looked to have put them on course for a comfortable victory that would have lifted them above Nottingham Forest on goal difference.
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However, after being bogged down at half-time, a stirring display from Andoni Iraola allowed Dominic Solanke, Illya Zabarnyi and Semenyo to cancel out Luton’s lead in the space of 14 minutes before Semenyo grabbed the winner with seven minutes remaining , which means dream. start turned into a nightmare for Rob Edwards.
“There were a few individual mistakes and we inspired them with the early goal,” said the devastated Luton manager, whose side take on Forest at Kenilworth Road on Saturday in a game that now carries more importance. “We put ourselves in a good position to win and we’re all angry and hurt. But we have no other choice and we have to try to pick ourselves up quickly.”
Solidarity between the two clubs was evident throughout the Stadium Live 88 days after Lockyer’s cardiac arrest, with the Bournemouth Supporters’ Trust raising more than £2,000 to help with the travel costs of Luton fans. Before the game the Luton captain shook hands with the medical staff who helped save his life on the pitch and was greeted by both support staff.
Luton, who ended a run of five goals with a late equalizer against Crystal Palace on Saturday, found themselves closing in on early goals after slow starts in their past three games. This time, they made no such mistake as Chong finished off a quick break down the field by heading home Jordan Clark’s cross in the ninth minute. Only Arsenal have scored more goals from leaders this season than Luton’s 14 so far.
Bournemouth’s last win here in the Premier League came back on Boxing Day during their purple patch. They created a number of chances in the first half after dominating possession but were on the verge of shooting. Dango Ouattara managed to achieve a reasonable position in a recurring theme. Reece Burke then needed a heroic last-ditch tackle to deny Semenyo a clear run at goal.
But Luton were always looking threatening on the break and so it was just after half-time when Chong and Alfie Doughty played a one-two before Ogbene headed home on the wing, with Ouattara guilty of the loss. his men. Bournemouth continued to camp out in Luton’s half and Lewis Cook’s long-range piledriver forced Thomas Kaminski into action again but they were frustrated when defending from a committed phalanx of white shirts.
It was another mistake from Ouattara that led to Luton scoring a third just before half-time after Issa Kaboré relieved him from the pitch and burst down the pitch, setting up Barkley to head into the net. “Town are staying up” shouted from the triumphant visiting supporters as Bournemouth left the pitch to a chorus of boos. Nor could what was about to happen.
“It’s very difficult to keep believing but the players did it,” Iraola said. “Everyone knew we had to improve and we showed our strong personality in the second half.”
The Bournemouth manager took out Alex Scott and Luis Sinisterra and the changes made an immediate difference. Solanke set himself up with a sublime backheel through the legs of Daiki Hashioka before curling past Kaminski to pull one back. Chong had the ball in the Bournemouth net again soon after but was ruled out.
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There was a standing ovation for Lockyer in the 59th minute – when the first leg was abandoned with the scores level at 1-1 – but the Bournemouth fans found their voice when Zabarnyi slotted home the second despite Doughty’s desperate efforts to clear the line from. corner. Moments later they were in dreamland when Semenyo struck Kaminski at his near post to equalize and leave Edwards scratching his head.
The visitors looked like they had done enough to hang on for a point, but it was Semenyo who had the final say as Bournemouth became the fifth team in Premier League history to win a game in which they scored three goals .
