Bournemouth thrash United, Chelsea falter in goalless Goodison stalemate

Bournemouth cruised past a hapless Manchester United 3-0 at Old Trafford, while Chelsea were frustrated in a goalless draw against a resolute Everton at Goodison Park.

 

Bournemouth delivered a commanding display to leap to fifth in the league table, courtesy of goals from Dean Huijsen, Justin Kluivert, and Antoine Semenyo. United, meanwhile, hit a new low, finding themselves in the bottom half of the Premier League standings at Christmas for the first time in the competition's history.

Huijsen opened the scoring in the 29th minute, outjumping Joshua Zirkzee to convert Ryan Christie's pinpoint free kick. United's frailties on set pieces resurfaced, having conceded similar goals against Arsenal and Nottingham Forest in recent weeks.

Despite a brief spell of pressure before the break, with Bruno Fernandes and Kobbie Mainoo coming close, United unravelled in the second half. Kluivert doubled Bournemouth's lead from the penalty spot after Noussair Mazraoui's clumsy challenge, and Semenyo quickly added a third, rifling past Andre Onana following a clever pass from Dango Ouattara.

United manager Ruben Amorim lamented his side's lack of composure, stating, "We suffered again on set-pieces and looked nervous. It's tough, but we need to focus and fight until the end."

The absence of Marcus Rashford for a third consecutive game fuelled speculation about his future, with the forward suggesting earlier this week he is ready for a "new challenge."

Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola praised his side's performance, calling it "a mature display," as the Cherries claimed back-to-back wins at Old Trafford following their identical 3-0 victory last season.

At Goodison Park, Chelsea missed an opportunity to reclaim top spot, settling for a frustrating 0-0 draw against Everton. Nicolas Jackson came closest for the visitors, hitting the post with a header from close range and later being denied at point-blank range by Jordan Pickford.

Everton's defensive resilience was on full display as they secured their fifth clean sheet in six matches, buoyed by the presence of new executive chairman Marc Watts. At the other end, Robert Sanchez produced key saves to deny Orel Mangala and Jack Harrison, while Tosin Adarabioyo's crucial block thwarted Iliman Ndiaye's late effort.

Chelsea defender Adarabioyo admitted, "It was very difficult. Everton are one of the best at keeping clean sheets, and we struggled to break them down."

The result ended Chelsea's eight-game winning streak across all competitions and their five-match Premier League run, leaving them second in the table, one point behind Liverpool but having played two games more.

For Everton, the point lifted them to 15th, four points clear of the relegation zone. Defender James Tarkowski highlighted their progress, saying, "We're stopping top teams from scoring against us. Another clean sheet shows we're building something."