Bournemouth head into the 2023/24 campaign as a bit of an unknown. They stunned the masses last season to comfortably beat the drop in the end but, after an interesting summer, they could well, once again, be viewed as one of the favourites to be relegated.
How the team did last season
The Cherries picked up a surprise 2-0 win over Aston Villa to kick off their 2022/23 season. They then lost their next three matches to Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool by an aggregate scoreline of 16-0.
Following the 9-0 defeat to Liverpool at Anfield, manager Scott Parker claimed the team were unequipped to compete in the Premier League. A few days later, he was dismissed.
Gary O’Neil was appointed as the interim boss though there was also talk of Marcelo Bielsa returning to the Premier League. O’Neil was later given the job on a permanent basis. A lot of people thought he should’ve been given the Manager of the Year award after guiding Bournemouth to a 15th-placed finish.
He masterminded victories over Liverpool and Spurs while drawing both matches against Newcastle United.
Midfielder Philip Billing was the standout performer for the Cherries last term. He finished as the club’s top scorer with seven and this included the winner against Liverpool. He was also one of only three players in the Bournemouth team to finish the campaign with an average rating of above 7.0.
What has happened during the summer?
Quite a lot.
Bournemouth have made a bit of a habit out of surprising people and they were at it again when they sacked O’Neil. It made a little more sense when the Cherries announced Andoni Iraola as their new manager.
The 41-year-old Spanish tactician has a clear philosophy and his teams play with a clear identity. Winger Jaidon Anthony revealed as much recently, saying: “It’s the direction the club wanted to go in and, as players, we just follow.
“[Iraloa’s] is a real attacking style of play. He wants us to get up the pitch and create chaos. We’re enjoying it. We’re going to be a side that creates a lot of chances and, as an attacking player, that’s something you want to be a part of.”
Whether that is sustainable or not is another conversation entirely. The point is, the Bournmeouth owners wanted a clear style and they now have it.
They have lost some key players this summer though. Jefferson Lerma left on a free transfer to join Crystal Palace. The 28-year-old topped the Bournemouth charts for Expected Assists last season with 3.1 and he was second on a per 90 basis for interceptions.
Matias Vina’s loan move from Roma wasn’t made into a permanent one despite his impressive showings. In the 3-2 win over Spurs, the 25-year-old claimed an 8.4 FotMob rating.
Bournemouth have made some moves in the window though. Hamed Traorè joined on a permanent basis following his loan stint with the club. Milos Kerkez joined from AZ Alkmaar to replace the departing Vina, he will likely be Iraola’s starting left-back. The 19-year-old has had an intriguing career already having been signed by AC Milan in 2021. His playing time at San Siro was limited and he moved to the Eredivisie. Having caught the eye there, Benfica tried to lure him to Portugal but they weren’t willing to meet AZ’s demands. Now the highly-rated full-back will be playing his trade in the Premier League.
Romain Faivre joined from Lyon but was immediately loaned to FC Lorient. Justin Kluivert was signed from Roma following a successful loan at Valencia last season. Still only 24, the Dutchman could turn out to be one of the shrewdest summer signings given the expectations are no longer ridiculously high after a series of loan moves saw his career stall a little.
Ionuț Radu made the switch from Inter, joining on loan for the season, as competition to Neto between the sticks.
What they should be aiming for next season?
Survival, firstly.
The Bournemouth squad is still primarily made up of players who helped them get back into the Premier League. Iraola has been appointed to raise the level within the squad but there’s still a limit to what he can do. This will be a season of implementing his style and then he will start to upgrade parts of the team in the future. With that in mind though, the aim should be survival. Once that is assured, a mid-table finish should be on the agenda.
Obviously, an improvement on their 15th-placed finish would be nice but if Bournemouth are playing better football and scoring more goals on their way to a 16th-placed finish, I can’t see many people stating it has been a failed experiment, can you?
Prediction
14th.
(Images from IMAGO)
Think you know better than our Premier League expert? Then play the FotMob Predictor Game and decide where your team will finish this season! Find the game in the More tab of the FotMob app, which you can download, for free, right here.