Shaun Longstaff’s last kick of the game gave Leeds a vital point in a 2-2 draw with Bournemouth and put them on the brink of staying in the Premier League, but it ended Cherries’ European dreams.
The summer signing scored for the second game in a row against Bournemouth seconds after the allotted six minutes of stoppage time ended, putting Leeds nine points clear of the bottom three. However, the teams below them, Nottingham Forest, West Ham and Tottenham, played fewer games.
Bournemouth deserved the chance to move into sixth place for the final Champions League spot, four points behind fifth-placed Liverpool, but could not match Leeds’ never-give-up attitude at the Vitality Stadium in the final stages.
Leeds head coach Daniel Farke told Sky Sports: “I’ve had enough experience in this business that I would be happy if it were mathematically safe, but I’m confident.”
“We have 40 points and are unbeaten in seven games in all competitions, so why do we have to lose the last four games?”
“We’re in a good position with a valuable point, but when there’s something to celebrate, we celebrate and now we’re going to keep our foot on the gas.”
The Cherries dominated the opening minutes without causing too much trouble for Karl Darlow, but Eli Junior Crupi, who had been a relative passenger up to that point, latched on to Marcos Senesi’s brilliant slide-rule pass and beat the Leeds goalkeeper with a deflection.
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Sean Longstaff’s superb volley earned Leeds a late draw against Bournemouth.
Manager Noah Okafor warned the hosts minutes later for ignoring Leeds’ reaction when the ball hit the post after a mistake from James Hill, but shortly after Bournemouth’s defenders equalized when Wilfried Gounondt’s long throw unfortunately deflected into his own goal.
Manager Andoni Iraola had rested Brazilian star Rayan amid Bournemouth’s busy schedule, but before the game he backed the youngster to make an impact from the bench. He did just that, ending the Cherries’ growing frustration in the closing stages and connecting with Tyler Adams’ cross to restore the lead with five minutes remaining.
It looked like the drama would end there and Bournemouth would take a well-deserved three points, especially when Evanilsson added what looked like a third goal before being ruled out for offside at a close loss.
But it wasn’t the end for Leeds, as Longstaff smashed in a stunning equalizer with the last kick of the game, securing a point with pure effort.
Iraora: “Longstaff’s equalizing goal was ruled offside, which is unacceptable”
Bournemouth head coach Andoni Iraola told Sky Sports.
“Obviously it’s very difficult to swallow. You have to accept that (Evanilson’s goal) was a few millimeters offside, but it’s one car and it’s the last millimeters on the shoulder.”
“But the last goal is unacceptable. Piroué is offside. He makes Petrovic’s job more difficult. We don’t know how much it affects him. But if it affects him by even 0.1 percent, it’s offside.”
“We lose two points because of this decision. Piroué makes it more difficult to save. There’s no debate. Did he save? We don’t know.”
