A difficult decision and a difficult start. After Bournemouth opted to move on from last season’s saviour from the dugout, Gary O’Neil, and bring in Andoni Iraola instead, it looked early on as though the team was struggling to adapt and results were, to say the least, desperate. By 26 October, a full quarter of the campaign gone, the Cherries had yet to win a league fixture, had just three points on the board and sat 19th in the table.
Iraola though, hadn’t panicked. And Bournemouth as a club, as a hierarchy, hadn’t wavered. Since that same date, they’ve played a further dozen league matches – with only Manchester City, Liverpool and Tottenham finding a way to beat them. Iraola has found his way, the players have learned his way and suddenly the club looks to be on a serious upward trajectory with a clear idea for improvement.
Perhaps equally importantly, they have current examples available to them of where that path could take them and just how high they might go.
Following a midweek draw at West Ham, the Cherries sit 13th, two places above where they finished last term and already just 13 points shy of their tally for the whole of 2022/23. Thanks to Iraola’s set-up and a few key players having a best-ever season of their careers, they are comfortably on course to eclipse that.
The Spanish coach spoke of his “obsession” to improve defensively early on, saying the team needed “more forcefulness” and putting emphasis on positional work against “side balls and second balls”. Later came the verticality he was after, a better pressing approach and more cohesive, controlled game in possession.
Those altered tactics can gradually be seen to be paying dividends in the Cherries sitting seventh for interceptions, eighth in final-third possessions won and 11th – and rising nicely – for touches in the opposition box. All of those numbers, associated with their press-and-attack transition play, are comfortably above their league position and looking to compete with sides generally in the top eight of the table. Similarly, their 34.6 xG conceded statistic is better than Man United, Wolves, Newcastle and Spurs, among others.
Areas for improvement clearly remain. Despite Dominic Solanke’s impressive 13-goal haul for the campaign so far, Bournemouth as a whole have netted just 29 and their season xG is only 30. But the foundations are well and truly in place for consistent and incremental improvements, with Iraola’s 4-2-3-1 setup giving good technical prowess in central midfield, plenty of variety in the support line and, crucially, great hold-up play and consistency from his No. 9.
Even with Solanke enjoying a standout campaign, another forward was an obvious need for the Cherries and in Enes Ünal, loaned on deadline day from Getafe with a permanent option for summer, they may now have that. The Turkish forward has long had plenty of promise but is still fully recovering from a long-term knee injury and will take some time to impact consistently.
Of further value this term has been the rotating cast in the attacking midfield line: Luis Sinisterra, Antoine Semenyo, Marcus Tavernier and Justin Kluivert provide dynamism, speed and an eye for shooting at every opportunity, though also plenty of inconsistency. Behind them, Ryan Christie has been a surprise reinvention success in the centre, while Alex Scott – injuries aside – has been an exciting revelation after his summer arrival.
It all speaks to a clear identity in what Iraola wants in his team, which has the knock-on effect of giving clarity in the transfer market whenever Bournemouth look to improve their squad and look to replace those who exit, if and when the inevitable big bids for their star players come in. The Vitality Stadium club don’t have to look too far for inspiration as to what can be done when that happens: further east along the south coast, Brighton have provided the template for smart scouting and smarter reinvestment once sales are made, and how the so-called smaller clubs can push to compete in Europe accordingly.
Consider the Seagulls again, their recent transfer business and add in the fact that Bournemouth owner Bill Foley completed his 2022 takeover for around £100m and it’s not inconceivable that, at some stage, a single player sale could eclipse that total club value. That’s what Iraola’s improvement this season has given the Cherries the possibility of contemplating; that’s what the fans can now hope for with sustained, and sustainable, growth on the pitch.
Perhaps Bournemouth are still a couple of seasons away from such concerns, but the Premier League moves swiftly and well-placed teams have been opportunistic before now at filling spaces left by those who make mistakes above them. Don’t bet against Bournemouth being next.
(Images from IMAGO)
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