Saturday, March 4, 2017

Manchester United 1-1 Bournemouth: Zlatan Ibrahimovic misses penalty and Cherries star sent off in hectic Old Trafford clash

Manchester United 1-1 Bournemouth: Zlatan Ibrahimovic misses penalty and Cherries star sent off in hectic Old Trafford clash

Manchester United missed the chance to break into the Premeir League's top four as they were held to a 1-1 draw by ten-man Bournemouth in a hectic clash at Old Trafford.

In a game littered with bizarre referee decisions and bookings galore, the Red Devils started well and deservedly took the lead through Marcus Rojo’s neat finish.

But the Cherries had chances of their own and were soon level thanks to a controversial penalty, scored by Josh King.

Bournemouth had Andrew Surman send off for a second booking shortly before half-time, but both sides were lucky to not suffer further dismissals, with Tyrone Mings stamping on Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s head and the striker later elbowing the Cherries defender in apparent retaliation.

United had a host of chances to seal victory in the second-half, but were left frustrated by their lack of finishing touch and Bournemouth goalkeeper Artur Boruc, who saved an Ibrahimovic penalty.

Paul Pogba was particularly wasteful in the closing stages, with the point seeing United remain in sixth place, while Bournemouth also stay in 14th.

The opening stages saw fans treated to an exciting clash, with both sides creating chances before Rojo’s opener, the Argentine diverting the ball into the net from Antonio Valencia's miscued shot.

But the game turned nasty following Bournemouth’s equaliser. United were left raging by the spot kick decision, with Phil Jones adjudged to __have fouled Marc Pugh in the box, and it set the tone for the rest of a scrappy encounter.

Ibrahimovic and Mings were involved in an ongoing battle, yet surprisingly both escaped punishment for a series of nasty exchanges between the two.

But the Cherries man is sure to face retrospective action from the FA after his shocking stamp on the back of Ibrahimovic's head as he lay on the ground, while the United striker could also be in further trouble for then elbowing the defender in the face as he rose in an aerial battle.

The latter incident was spotted by a number of players, including Surman, who was shown a yellow card for pushing the Swede but was only sent off when Wayne Rooney reminded referee Kevin Friend that he had already booked the player earlier in the game.

The first-half ended in chaos, and the second-half began with more controversy as United boss Jose Mourinho was seen speaking in the ear of Mings, with a Bournemouth player forced to intervene.

Boruc was deservedly named Man-of-the-Match for his display in the Bournemouth net, with the Pole not only denying Ibrahimovic from the spot – rewarded after handball from Adam Smith – but also making great saves to thwart Pogba, Rooney and Anthony Martial.

United had 21 efforts on goal and ramped up the pressure in five minutes of added time, but just weren’t clinical enough, with Bournemouth holding on for their first league point in five games.