That was the heroic performance Bournemouth desperately needed to get out of their bad run of form. To hold the newly crowned EFL Cup champions Manchester United to a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford is a decent result for any side, especially playing with 10 men for the entire second half. The Cherries will be hopeful it's all up from here on.
Positives
The resilience and fantastic attitude on display by every Bournemouth player was the biggest positive of the day. Tyrone Mings finally put in a decent performance and seems to be growing with each game. Artur Boruc also put in a brilliant display between the posts, while the team proved they can cope without Jack Wilshere in the starting XI.
Negatives
Defensively, especially in the opening 20 minutes, Bournemouth were all over the place at times and fortunate not to be punished. While Simon Francis is clearly not a Premier League player, he does at least supply some leadership at the back -- something the Cherries clearly need more of. Andrew Surman is still not convincing enough to keep Dan Gosling out the side, either.
Manager rating out of 10
10 -- It was always going to take a bold managerial decision to dig Bournemouth out of this slump, and Eddie Howe's decision to drop Wilshere was just that. It was a brave team selection, and it reaped the rewards in the end, with a excellent point away from home.
Player ratings: (1-10; 10=best. Players introduced after 70 minutes get no rating)
GK Artur Boruc, 10 -- Put in an outstanding performance and silenced a lot of his recent critics with save after save. His 55th stop (I lost count) of Paul Pogba's curling effort was the pick of the bunch, along with saving the penalty.
DF Adam Smith, 6 -- Gave away the penalty kick and was often caught too far up the field putting his team at risk of a counter attack. Smith did offer an attacking outlet but was also Bournemouth's weakest link.
DF Tyrone Mings, 7 -- Made a couple of positioning errors earlier on, nearly costing his side a goal, but Mings grew into the game and put in a good performance up against Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
DF Steve Cook, 6 -- Put up a decent fight in repelling Manchester United's attack, but Cook was the man to blame for conceding a goal as he was playing Marcos Rojo onside.
DF Charlie Daniels, 6 -- Like fellow full-back Smith, Daniels had a quiet afternoon. Defended suitably when called upon and attacked where he could, but he didn't do very much.
MF Ryan Fraser, 8 -- Pressed the opposing midfield well and simply didn't stop running up and down the flank. Fraser's never-say-die attitude, no matter the scoreline, is admirable.
MF Harry Arter, 9 -- It was another 90 minutes in which Arter just did not stop running. Tackle after tackle, block after block. He was excellent in the centre of the park.
MF Andrew Surman, 5 -- Unfortunate to be sent off, but apart from seeing a red card, he did little of note.
MF Josh King, 8 -- Constantly caused havoc up front and supplied his team an attacking outlet whenever possible. King also dispatched the spot-kick in reliable fashion, and he is growing into a very trustworthy penalty taker.
MF Marc Pugh, 6 -- The Cherries had a quicker tempo to their play in the first half with Pugh on the pitch, but he was the correct player to sub off when trying to shore up the side after Surman's dismissal.
FW Benik Afobe, 7 -- Ran the channels well and stretched the United back four. Did his fair share of defending as well due to the Cherries being a man down. An all-around decent performance from the striker.
Substitutes
MF Dan Gosling, 8 -- Being a man down at half-time, Bournemouth desperately needed a hard worker who was going to do more than his fair share of defensive work, and that's exactly what Gosling did.
DF Baily Cargill, NR -- Came on late in replacement for Mings to make his Premier League debut and did well in helping see out the draw.
MF Max Gradel, NR -- Came on in the 87th minute for King.