Bournemouth finally win at home, just not in the league

Evanilson headed Bournemouth in front in the first half against Sturm Graz, rising above his marker to put the hosts ahead in a Europa League tie that mattered well beyond the three points on offer. Rayan added a second, and according to The Guardian, Rodríguez got in on it too, turning a routine home win into something Bournemouth have never actually managed before: their first ever victory on home soil in European competition.

This is a club that had never cracked the code of winning at home in Europe until this week, and they did it against a Sturm Graz side managed by Marco Rose in what looks, from the scoreline alone, like one of the more comfortable nights of Bournemouth's season.

A competition that's actually going well

It follows an away win at Real Sociedad earlier in the campaign, which means Bournemouth's Europa League record now reads considerably better than their domestic one. Andoni Iraola's side sit 18th in the Premier League after six games, with no wins, three draws and three defeats, a goal difference of minus six telling its own story about how often they've been on the wrong end of results.

The gap between the two competitions is becoming hard to ignore. In the league, Bournemouth look like a side searching for any kind of foothold. In Europe, they've now beaten a side away from home and dismantled one at Vitality Stadium, scoring freely in the process.

Breathing room, if not an answer

Zero wins from six in the league is still zero wins from six, whatever happens on a Thursday night against Austrian opposition. But for a squad valued at over half a billion euros and currently sitting with a minus-six goal difference domestically, a comprehensive European home win is the kind of result that buys a manager time and gives a dressing room something to actually enjoy talking about.

Sturm Graz, for their part, will have to regroup under Rose having conceded at least twice on the road. For Bournemouth, it's a first home win in Europe, after however many attempts it took to get there.