Brilliant Justin Kluivert scores hat-trick as Bournemouth crush Newcastle
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Justin Kluivert ended Newcastle’s nine-game winning run with a stunning hat-trick as Bournemouth strengthened their own claims of European football with a fine victory at St James’ Park. Kluivert, whose father Patrick played for the Magpies during his glittering career, struck twice either side of Bruno Guimaraes equaliser and then again at the death before Milos Kerkez added a fourth as the Cherries extended their unbeaten run to 11 games in all competitions – 10 of them in the league – with a 4-1 success.
What will have pleased head coach Andoni Iraola most is that they were good value for the three points after unsettling and largely outplaying Eddie Howe’s men – who would have gone third for at least 24 hours with a 10th successive win – on an afternoon when striker Alexander Isak’s eight-game scoring run came to an end.
Bournemouth set out their stall from the off with Sandro Tonali having to make a timely second-minute intervention after David Brooks had run in behind full-back Lewis Hall and sent the ball across the six-yard box, but Newcastle simply did not heed the early warning.
Antoine Semenyo should have put the visitors after Martin Dubravka had parried Dango Ouattara’s first-time effort, only to blast wastefully over, but the respite proved temporary. Ryan Christie sent Semenyo in behind Tino Livramento down the left and pulled the ball back for Kluivert, who took advantage of Jacob Murphy’s lapse in concentration to find the bottom corner.
