Bournemouth vs AC Milan ended in a famous 3-0 win for the Cherries on Thursday night, as the Premier League side dismantled 10-man AC Milan in the Europa League. Two first-half penalties and a sublime late free-kick sealed a result that keeps Bournemouth’s perfect European record intact.
Justin Kluivert and Marcus Tavernier converted spot-kicks in the first half after Milan goalkeeper and captain Mike Maignan was sent off early for a foul on Tyler Adams. Down to ten men, the Italian giants never recovered, and Amine Adli curled home an 84th-minute free-kick to complete the rout, Dawn reported.
Bournemouth vs AC Milan: how the night unfolded
The tone was set early when Maignan brought down Adams outside his area, leaving the referee no choice but to show red. Forced to sacrifice an outfield player for a replacement keeper, Milan’s game plan unravelled quickly. Kluivert and Tavernier both kept their nerve from twelve yards to put Bournemouth firmly in control before the break.
Adli’s late strike, a beautifully flighted free-kick, was the pick of the goals and sparked jubilant scenes from the home crowd. It was Bournemouth’s third win from three in what is the club’s inaugural Europa League campaign, following an opening victory at Real Sociedad and last week’s 3-0 home win over Sturm Graz.
“I trust ourselves. It doesn’t matter who we play against. We know what we’re capable of, and I think we showed that today,” Kluivert told TNT Sports. “We came off two victories, so that gave us a good feeling for this game.”
The win also wrote a small piece of history: Bournemouth became the first English club since Sunderland in the 1973-74 season to win their first three European fixtures. The Cherries will now face Sparta Prague and Celta Vigo in November with a genuine chance of topping the group.
The Cherries’ perfect start contrasts with a difficult week for some English clubs in Europe. Crystal Palace needed a late fightback to draw 2-2 with Besiktas in Istanbul, days after Manchester United were humiliated 4-1 by Como. Aston Villa, though, kept their own perfect Champions League start alive with a 3-1 win over Viking.
Juventus denied by VAR as Leverkusen go three from three
There was late drama in Turin, where Juventus thought they had come from behind to beat Rennes. Zeki Celik had put Juve ahead after five minutes before a poor clearance let Musa Al-Taamari poke home an equaliser, and Boulaye Dia put the visitors ahead just before the break.
Nick Woltemade converted a penalty for a handball to make it 2-2, and Jhon Lucumi’s 88th-minute strike looked to have completed the turnaround, only for VAR to rule it out for a marginal offside.
Elsewhere, Bayer Leverkusen made it three straight wins with a Jonas Hofmann double earning a 2-0 victory at OFI Crete. The once-mighty Hungarian side Ferencvaros kept pace on nine points with a 4-1 thrashing of Portuguese outfit Torreense, while Belgium’s Union Saint-Gilloise beat Israeli side Hapoel Be’er Sheva 4-0.
Sunderland were left frustrated in Poland, drawing 1-1 with Lech Poznan after Timur Tutierov’s second-minute opener. Olympique de Marseille lost 1-0 to Sturm Graz, and Olympique Lyonnais were thrashed 3-0 by Hoffenheim.
Salah on target as Trabzonspor win in Conference League
In the Conference League, former Liverpool striker Mohamed Salah opened the scoring from the penalty spot in Trabzonspor’s 2-0 win over Scottish side Hearts, while Brighton were held to a 0-0 draw at Czech side Jablonec. AS Monaco thumped Freiburg 3-0 and Ajax edged a 2-0 win over Atalanta.
Who scored for Bournemouth against AC Milan?
Justin Kluivert and Marcus Tavernier both scored first-half penalties, and Amine Adli added an 84th-minute free-kick to seal the 3-0 win.
Why was Mike Maignan sent off?
The Milan goalkeeper and captain was shown a straight red card early in the match for a foul on Bournemouth midfielder Tyler Adams.
When does Bournemouth play next in Europe?
Bournemouth face Sparta Prague and Celta Vigo in November as they chase a perfect record in their maiden Europa League campaign.
Read our reports on Aston Villa’s perfect Champions League start and Real Madrid’s 4-1 win over RB Leipzig.
