AFC Bournemouth
Scott Parker has given his thoughts after AFC Bournemouth were defeated 1-0 by Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium.
Andraz Sporar’s controversial second-half penalty gave the hosts all three points on Teeside, as the Cherries remain second in the Championship standings.
After the game, Parker addressed the media and admitted a below par second-half performance cost his team a result.
"Ultimately, in the second half we nowhere near good enough and we were second best to everything," Parker said.
"I thought in the first half we were very good, we had three huge chances. If one of them goes in or at least a couple, you give yourself a chance.
"Having said that, in the second-half, we were nowhere near good enough from our standards.
"The longer the game goes on, I see a bit more of a desperate team. We were second best to duals, second best to challenges and you give yourself a platform.
"In the end, they gave themselves a platform and it proved difficult for us."
Parker went on to talk of the recent run of results, as the Cherries now have just one win in eight league fixtures, the last of those coming at home to Swansea in an emphatic 4-0 victory.
He continued: "There’s an element of having an awful lot of injuries.
"I see a team at this present moment in time that’s just a little bit dented. I see a team that lacks a little bit of belief at the moment.
"The first half I liked us in moments and the game could go differently if we were clinical. The second half, we didn't start well and, once we went a goal down, we only had half chances.
"At this present moment in time, that's where we are. We need to get out of this as quickly as possible and I have no doubt we will do.
"It's part and parcel of seasons and of what happens. Of course, we need to fix this very quickly and work out just where this next win is going to come from."
Parker concluded by discussing the game's key moment after Isaiah Jones was brought down under the challenge of Jaidon Anthony seven minutes into the second half.
The Cherries head coach admitted he hadn't had a chance to see the incident back but could see why referee, Chris Kavanagh, pointed to the spot.
"I'm not sure and, at the time, I didn’t know," Parker said.
"From a distance, as it was happening, I thought it could be a penalty in terms of how the dynamics are.
"Someone has made a mistake tracking back, his gone across his line but ultimately I don’t know, I’m not sure."
