Howe refuses to cry foul over penalty
Bournemouth 0 Leicester City 0
Marc Pugh of AFC Bournemouth shoots at goal. Photo: Getty Images
Eddie Howe revealed his "sympathy" for referee Graham Scott despite the official's failure to award a clear-cut penalty that potentially cost Bournemouth victory at home to Leicester.
The hosts convincingly outplayed their visitors, but repeatedly wasted the numerous chances from which they should have scored.
Shinji Okazaki of Leicester City and Charlie Daniels of AFC Bournemouth compete for the ball. Photo: Getty Images
In only the third minute, Danny Simpson's outstretched hand tipped Marc Pugh's goal-bound shot wide, when goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel was out of position, but with his vision obscured, Scott allowed play to continue.
Bournemouth refused to be disheartened by the injustice and created sufficient chances to secure a one-sided victory, but their wastefulness in front of goal ultimately means they remain in the bottom three.
"I can't be clever: I've got sympathy for him because I didn't see it at the time," said the manager, whose team remain 19th. "It was on the opposite side of the pitch to me. The only thing I saw was Marc Pugh's reaction and knowing the player as I do, that gave me a sign that there was something.
"It's only when you see it again, slowed down, that you see it's a clear-cut penalty, but that's not the reason we didn't win. It's very much in our hands and we didn't take those chances when they came."
Jermain Defoe of AFC Bournemouth controls the ball under pressure from Harry Maguire of Leicester City. Photo: Getty Images
Howe's opposite number, Craig Shakespeare, refused to say that Bournemouth had deserved a penalty from the incident, but after acknowledging Leicester had performed poorly, stressed the importance of the coming international break.
"We had that happen to us last week: people tell you it evens out, but I don't know if it does," he said. "It was a hard call, it happened really quickly, there was not much movement from Danny's arm. The referee made a quick decision and didn't give a penalty.
"It was a hard-earned point. Bournemouth started really well, we struggled to get the pace of the game and the momentum was with Bournemouth. I have to be happy with a point.
"We've taken five points from Brighton, Huddersfield and Bournemouth, we've had a real tough start in terms of playing top teams. We've got a chance now to regroup and really try bring some momentum to our season."
