Bournemouth's four-goal second-half was something to savour

The way Bournemouth ran into trouble against Reading was not ideal and it could have been a crushing defeat, if the Cherries continued to play like they did in the first half. But when Dominic Solanke scored Bournemouth's first goal, the game took on a totally different aspect. The substitution at half-time had enabled Lloyd Kelly to play as a left-back and his cross was the kind of delivery that that had been missing in the first half. With the goal came the belief that Bournemouth could overturn Reading's lead.

Lewis Cook doesn't score many goals but he saved up something special for his first Bournemouth goal.
It was the speed of Bournemouth's total recovery that made the comeback against Reading so surprising. As soon as they had got one goal, they had two and the moves that hadn't been coming off earlier were suddenly cutting Reading open. It was impressive to see the movement and almost telepathic nature of the way David Brooks put Arnaut Danjuma in for Bournemouth's second goal, and from there, nobody could have expected Lewis Cook to suddenly strike his first goal for Bournemouth. It was long overdue and it was completely out of the blue. The technique and precision of the shot were devastating. As soon as it hit the back of the net there was no way Bournemouth were going to lose hold of this game.

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It still needed a superb save from Begovic to keep Reading from getting their third goal and the contribution of Begovic can't be underestimated. It all boosts the team feeling and the collective belief that this is a team that can win promotion. Solanke is also becoming a striker that is hungry to get his name on the score sheet every game and by scoring more than one goal in a match, he will start to think he can score at anytime.

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Jason Tindall will still see that Bournemouth are not playing perfectly yet. The first half was poor despite the dominance of possession. The corner routines were totally off-track. The team is not starting games with a high enough concentration or intensity. They are relying on their ability a little too much and need to add some grit to their game. Once they get that right we will start to see 90-minute performances.

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Still, it was a thrilling comeback and we haven't seen that kind of determination to succeed for a long time. It makes me believe that all is well under Jason Tindall and Bournemouth can achieve their aims this season, if they can keep progressing, limit their injuries and navigate their way safely through the January transfer window.

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