Newcastle's prospects of securing a European spot have taken a significant hit following a late 2-1 loss to Bournemouth, who extended their unbeaten run in the Premier League to 13 matches. The Magpies were in dire need of a win after consecutive defeats to Sunderland and Crystal Palace, but instead found themselves slipping further away from the European picture. The pressure on Eddie Howe has intensified as Newcastle's inability to close out games has once again been called into question. Meanwhile, Andoni Iraola's in-form side showed no signs of weakness despite the Cherries boss announcing his decision to leave the club at the end of the season.
Bournemouth dominated the first half, with Newcastle struggling to cope with their press. The Cherries took the lead just after the half-hour mark when Marcus Tavernier tapped in Rayan's pass. They could have doubled their advantage soon after with a similar move, but Evanilson failed to convert Alex Scott's delivery.
The England midfielder almost scored an own goal at the other end, but Djordje Petrovic made a superb stop late in the half. Lewis Hall was replaced by Kieran Trippier at the break due to an injury, but there was positive news in the 62nd minute when captain Bruno Guimaraes made his return after two months out to a great ovation. His influence was immediately felt as Newcastle equalized. Initially, it was thought that Guimaraes' pass had found Will Osula, who held off his defender before scoring.
However, the offside flag was raised, only for VAR to overturn the decision, ruling that Evanilson had gotten the final touch ahead of Guimaraes, making Osula's goal valid. But there was another injury concern when Tino Livramento appeared to limp off with a groin injury. Newcastle's afternoon took a turn for the worse when Truffert gave Bournemouth the lead again in the 85th minute. He initiated the move, picking out Tavernier down the left, whose cross was met by Evanilson before Truffert poked the loose ball past Aaron Ramsdale.
It marked the third consecutive Premier League game in which Newcastle have conceded match-losing goals after the 80th minute, highlighting their ongoing struggle to hold on to points. As nine minutes of injury time were added, Guimaraes drew another fine save from Petrovic, before Burn blazed a header over as Newcastle suffered yet another defeat. They remain in 14th place on 42 points, six points behind Bournemouth in eighth, who are level with Brentford and Chelsea on 48 points, boosting their own European ambitions.
Newcastle boss Eddie Howe stated, 'I don't think it was our best performance. I thought it was quite even between the goals.
They are on a good run of form and playing with confidence, while we are on the opposite end of that.' Bournemouth head coach Andoni Iraola said, 'I think we played really well, especially in the first half. The second half was expected to be a reaction from them, and they pushed us.
At 1-1, the momentum of the game changed, but we showed composure and deserved this.'