The Vitality Stadium played host to an exhilarating encounter between Bournemouth and Leicester City which ended 1-0 to the visitors in the Emirates FA Cup Fifth Round.
With a crowd of 10,872 spectators witnessing a thrilling display of football, it was teenage sensation Abdul Fatawu whose moment of brilliance secured Leicester City’s passage into the quarter-final stage.
For much of the opening period, Bournemouth appeared to hold the upper hand, controlling possession and creating numerous chances. However, despite amassing a staggering 27 attempts on goal, only four found their way on target, leaving the scoreline goalless at halftime.
The second half saw more of the same, with Bournemouth continuing to create openings yet failing to find the net. As the clock ticked closer to full-time, it seemed increasingly likely that the contest would head to penalties.
In the dying embers of extra time, Leicester City introduced Abdul Fatawu as a substitute. Within minutes, he produced a piece of individual magic, darting past several defenders before unleashing a powerful shot that flew beyond the reach of Bournemouth keeper Mark Travers. This decisive strike sent Leicester City into the next round, marking their fourth appearance in the last eight of the prestigious cup competition since lifting the trophy in the 2020/21 season.
Enzo Maresca’s side now look ahead to the draw for the quarter-finals, where they hope to continue their journey towards another potential FA Cup triumph. Meanwhile, Bournemouth will reflect upon a valiant effort that ultimately fell short, having created so many opportunities without finding the net.
Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola:
“It’s a bad day because we had hopes in this competition, but it’s true that if you play 120 minutes at home and you have the chances to attack we had today and you don’t score a goal, at the end, you deserve to get out of the competition.
“We were really bad in the last third, really bad. We recovered the ball very high a lot of times and even in the last passes, we didn’t decide well. They scored from a really difficult position – a top goal – and that’s the main reason they won.
“It’s something that is happening to us, especially over the last month, I would say. Even in the games we played really well in – Newcastle, Man City, Fulham – we are not scoring enough. That’s what makes the difference.”
Leicester head coach Enzo Maresca:
“We are happy because tonight we missed many chances, but at the end we have been lucky because we could score one goal.
“We try always to share minutes in this kind of game because all of the players deserve the chance.
“Tonight was a mix between many young players and some senior players and in the end, we played a good game.
“The FA Cup is a fantastic competition so when you have the chance to go forward it’s a good one.
“The league is important, the FA Cup is important, but the most important thing for me is the way we perform. Tonight, once again, the performance was good.”
Bournemouth travel to Burnley on Sunday while Leicester host QPR in the Championship on Saturday.
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