Bournemouth's Scottish midfielder Ryan Fraser is tackled by Southampton's Moroccan midfielder Sofiane Boufal (2nd R) during the English Premier League football match between Southampton and Bournemouth at St Mary's Stadium in Southampton, southern England on April 1, 2017. The game finished 0-0. Adrian DENNIS / AFP
Bournemouth’s Harry Arter blazed a late penalty high over the crossbar as his side were forced to settle for a 0-0 draw at local rivals Southampton on Saturday.
Eddie Howe’s team had a chance to secure their first ever win at Southampton when Ryan Bertrand conceded the penalty with a foul on Ryan Fraser.
But Cherries midfielder Arter lost his footing as he ran up to take the spot-kick and blasted it into the fans behind Fraser Forster’s goal.
Arter’s howler meant a frenetic derby finished in a stalemate that did little for either team’s hopes of climbing out of mid-table in the Premier League.
Southampton’s Dusan Tadic had complained this week about the frequency with which Claude Puel substitutes him and his manager responded by telling him to do his talking on the pitch.
Inevitably, Tadic was gifted the game’s first chance, but he wasn’t able to prove his point.
Finding himself with time and space to run into at the edge of the area in the fourth minute, the Serbian midfielder could only send his left-footed shot well wide.
An end-to-end encounter saw Southampton’s Steven Davis clear off the line after Andrew Surman touched Fraser’s right-wing corner beyond Forster.
Tadic played an incisive ball over the top of Bournemouth’s defence towards Jay Rodriguez, whose shot was tipped away by Artur Boruc.
Bournemouth’s Benik Afobe fired wide when he should have hit the target after the interval, while Nathan Redmond drew a fine save from Boruc.
In the 78th minute, Bertrand was harshly penalised by Jonathan Moss as the referee ruled the Saints defender’s tug on Fraser was worthy of a penalty.
The stage was set for a Bournemouth victory, but Arter slipped at the crucial moment, driving his shot into orbit and sending Howe into turf-thumping anguish on the touchline.
Source: G Sport
