Perhaps Scott Parker’s frank forewarning was a feat of kidology. Bournemouth’s manager did not sugarcoat his words in the buildup to their first Premier League game in two years, saying his squad was under-resourced and weaker than the one promoted from the Championship. The reality is Bournemouth totally outsmarted an Aston Villa team fresh from a summer facelift. The hosts flew out of the blocks, Jefferson Lerma leathering in on three minutes after feasting on some poor Villa defending, and they doubled their advantage with 10 minutes to play when Kieffer Moore headed in unchallenged. Bournemouth deserved victory on their return to this level but for Steven Gerrard, who acknowledged his side need to walk the walk after a positive pre-season, this alarming display will have provided a rude awakening.
For Villa it was an afternoon reminiscent of their opening-day defeat to Watford last season, when a promoted team wiped the floor with them and they trailed 3-0 inside 67 minutes. As stoppage time ticked away Gerrard stood forlorn on the edge of his technical area, hands in pockets. Bournemouth took the lead from an early corner, Lerma hammering home after Lloyd Kelly nodded Marcus Tavernier’s floated ball back across the box. If that made uncomfortable viewing for Gerrard on the touchline then Moore’s header, which stemmed from a Bournemouth free-kick, was an equally painful watch. Kelly was allowed to swing in a high cross from the byline and both Boubacar Kamara, who along with Diego Carlos wilted on debut, and Matty Cash seemed reluctant to challenge, to the delight of Moore who picked his spot.
