Bournemouth boss Eddie Howe admitted his side had failed to live up to expectations as they were held to a goalless draw against Norwich City on Saturday.
The Cherries were hoping for all three points against Daniel Farke’s injury-ravaged side, who picked up a first Premier League clean sheet and away point of the season, despite finishing an uneventful contest on the south coast without a recognised centre-back.
Ben Godfrey, who underwent a hernia operation during the international break, limped off early in the second period at the Vitality Stadium, leaving the Canaries with a makeshift pairing of Alex Tettey and Ibrahim Amadou.
Teemu Pukki almost gave the Canaries all three points with a powerful second-half drive which was tipped wide by Bournemouth goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale.
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Dominic Solanke came closest to breaking the deadlock for the hosts when he was denied by Tim Krul in the first half before the Cherries’ performance petered out. The result was the club’s first 0-0 draw in the league for a year.
Howe was disappointed with his side’s failure to capitalise on the Norwich’s defensive issues but credited Farke’s men with being “a tough nut to crack”. “People will see the fact we’re playing Norwich at home and the expectation is for it to be a home win and I understand that and that’s certainly our expectation as well,” said Howe.
“But these games are never that easy. I fully respect Norwich and their manager, their players and the way that they play.
They’re a tough nut to crack and they were today for us. “We sort of faded away in the game, stopped doing the things that had brought us that early dominance and then became quite desperate to score.”
Expectations are likely to be high next Saturday as well when the Cherries travel to Vicarage Road to take on bottom side Watford, who fought out a 1-1 draw with Tottenham yesterday.
