Bournemouth

Tom Jordan
Fan writer

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Cherries fans are still nervously waiting to see whether Andoni Iraola will sign a contract extension with the club, with his current deal expiring at the end of the season.

Fans are clutching at any scraps of news in the hope their main man stays.

Andoni's presence at a recent match involving the club's under-21s has only intensified discussion among supporters about his future, with some questioning why a manager expected to depart would take such interest in Bournemouth's emerging talent if he were planning to move on.

There is however a possibility that the head coach was purely keeping an eager eye on returning first-team winger, Ben Gannon-Doak. The Scottish youngster returned to the first team for a short cameo last time out, having previously not played since the start of November because of injury.

The future of Andoni simply must come to its conclusion one way or the other, and the gaffer himself has indicated a decision will be made, and the fans will be made aware, very soon.

It's fair to say Cherries fans are desperate for Iraola to stay and extend his contract, but I'd say it currently feels very 50/50 on whether they believe he will.

Andoni will clearly have a lot of suitors, and now that the club he supports in Athletic Club have announced their manager is set to depart come the season's conclusion, the fear amongst Cherries fans is growing.

Another club to reportedly signal their interest is Crystal Palace, however this has been branded as "tittle-tattle" by many, and certainly on Andoni's part, with an ownership at Bournemouth who are certainly prepared to be ambitious - a potential move across to south London would be nothing short of baffling.

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Bournemouth are happy to sell Julian Araujo, the 24-year-old right-back on loan to Celtic, this summer. (Football Insider), external

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Mark Mitchener
BBC Sport Senior Journalist

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The last international break of the season, coupled with a lack of involvement in the latter stages of the FA Cup, have combined to give Bournemouth more than three weeks off between games, with no fixture between 20 March and 11 April.

As it stands, their last seven games should then play out in a straightforward one-game-per-weekend, although potential spanner in the works remain, as should Leeds United make the semi-finals and/or Manchester City reach the final, the Cherries' league games on those weekends would be rearranged.

With no league action until after Easter, fans' thoughts will naturally turn to the uncertainty around head coach Andoni Iraola's future as the Spaniard's contract enters its last few months.

Certainly, there can be no doubt in his mind how much the club, and the supporters, would love him to extend his stay on the south coast.

"It means a lot to me. I feel very valued," Iraola told Sky last week when asked about the affection he enjoys, while remaining politely tight-lipped about his future, having insisted all along that he has been happy to sign contracts on a year-by-year basis in the past.

However, while there has been plenty of speculation in the past year or so linking Iraola with other English clubs, one piece of news announced last Friday has left Cherries fans fearing the worst.

Athletic Club head coach Ernesto Valverde confirmed that he would be leaving the Bilbao side at the end of this season after three spells in charge, and it would be inconceivable that Iraola – a former Athletic Club captain who made over 400 league appearances in a 12-year stint – would not be among those shortlisted as Valverde's replacement.

Acknowledging the speculation, Iraola insisted on Friday that while the Valverde news affected him "as a supporter" of Athletic Club, his focus remained with the Cherries.

And while remaining in Dorset would keep him at the helm of a club with an exciting young squad, a new state-of-the-art training ground, a stadium due for long-awaited expansion this summer, and a stable ownership determined to keep the club on an upward trajectory, the pull of returning "home" cannot be quantified.

The next few weeks may provide some answers.

Tom Jordan
Fan writer

Image source, Getty Images

The World Cup will soon be upon us and it remains to be seen just how many of the Cherries squad will be involved, but there are plenty of potential candidates.

The trio of nations hosting the tournament all have players within the Bournemouth squad, with some more fancied to get the nod than others. Despite a number of injury woes, Tyler Adams remains a key cog for Mauricio Pochettino's United States side and would fully expect a call-up, and while Julian Araujo and Daniel Jebbison are away on loans, they'll both be keen to be involved too.

Araujo's injury issues may be the only thing stopping a Mexico call-up, but Jebbison certainly looks set to compete to be the main frontman for Jesse Marsch's Canada side.

As for British hopefuls, Bournemouth have plenty of players champing at the bit to earn places on the plane. Scotland should have a couple of Cherries within their squad, with Ryan Christie remaining a pivotal player for them, plus Ben Gannon-Doak will be an exciting option.

England may have an abundance of quality competing for places, but Alex Scott is still banging on the door. If Wales qualify, David Brooks too will most certainly get a spot in their squad.

It still feels surreal to have both Bournemouth and Brazil in the same sentence, but there could well be a Cherry heading to the World Cup with the five-time winners. Rayan has recently received his first call-up to the senior national team, and similarly, Evanilson has a chance - albeit unlikely.

In terms of recent call-ups, Amine Adli has also managed to do just that for Morocco and should feel confident about remaining in the current Afcon winners' squad. Also, another to be rewarded with a call-up of late is Marcos Senesi with Argentina, so his impressive season should certainly see him on the plane also.

Some less likely but potential shouts include both Adrien Truffert and Junior Kroupi for France, Alex Jimenez for Spain and, if he can get fit, Justin Kluivert for the Netherlands.

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Pundits Alan Shearer and Wayne Rooney join host Mark Chapman to bring you the action and talking points from Friday and Saturday's Premier League fixtures.

Watch on BBC iPlayer here

And listen back to full match commentaries on BBC Sounds:

• Everton 3-0 Chelsea

• Fulham 3-1 Burnley

We asked for your thoughts after Friday's Premier League game between Bournemouth and Manchester United.

Here are some of your comments:

Bournemouth fans

Charl: First-class performance from the whole squad, including timely substitutions. Bournemouth never let up, they kept the pressure on United until the last kick - superb! Every player deserves credit. Andoni Iraola, you are a magician!

Tony: A fairly even first half, but Bournemouth continued to grow in the second period and by the end looked more likely winners, even without the sending off. Good game!

Simon: Another draw but happy with that, and the performance coming from behind twice. Other years, Cherries lose that by two or three goals. All three penalty decisions were correct and good to see VAR supporting on-field decision for once, empowering a referee further. Pleased Christie scored and with his right foot. Kroupi did well with his penalty kick. Seven more games, and seven wins instead of more draws?

Phillip: Crazy game, but we take a point!

Man Utd fans

Adam: The team is alive right now, and it's fantastic to see after how bad things were under the previous coach. It's just a shame that awful refereeing decisions stole the show and denied victory. Like the Afcon final, will United get the three points on appeal or at least a rematch? Seems only fair after the farcical performance from the officials.

Chris: It's a pity a poor refereeing decision is yet again the main talking point. It overshadowed what would have been a good result had United been awarded a second penalty. That said, there were periods United were in control but couldn't find the killer pass to finish Bournemouth off and, if you can't do that, you will always be vulnerable. Arguably, United's display deserved more than a single point. Despite the points dropped, they are still masters of their own destiny.

Lyn: Once again, a referee/VAR screws up - nothing new there. Once again, we get ahead and then fall off - nothing new there. We struggle against high-intensity teams and that needs to be addressed in summer. Overall, though, a draw is OK.

Bob: Excellent performance and an exciting game utterly ruined by another woeful display from PGMOL.

Gary Rose
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

This has been a strange season for Bournemouth in that they started it superbly, had a big dip in the middle but have picked up once again and are embarking on a club record-equalling run.

Kroupi's penalty ensured they extended their unbeaten run to 11 games and keeps them just about in the hunt for finish in the European places as they sit 10th, one point off eighth place.

They arguably had the better of this game until Bruno Fernandes' penalty but lacked a clinical touch in the final third.

However, they produced the battling qualities that has been them go undefeated for so long to twice come from behind and earn a deserved point.

But while their unbeaten run is impressive it is now five successive draws, which they know they will need to start turning into wins if they are to snatch a finish in the European spots.

Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraolia, speaking to BBC MOTD: "We wanted three points and we played well enough, but they looked dangerous every time they came forward. We played really well and at the end, probably because we finished against 10 men, we were the closest team to winning it. It's a challenging game against Manchester United.

"We have the advantage we can see replays quickly and I didn't think there was anything in that one [Amad Diallo penalty appeal]. I think the Evanilson one and the Matheus Cunha one are both penalties because defenders lose the position and then the Amad one is never a penalty. We asked for one in the first half - Harry Maguire with two hands behind his back but I don't think that was enough for a penalty either. I don't think there is much to discuss.

"A draw against United is a good result. But 15 draws, and in some of those we deserved more. We have equalled our record in the Premier League with 11 games [unbeaten] but it's going to be very difficult to beat it because we play Arsenal away next. We will have to be very good to beat that record."

Speaking to Sky Sports, Iraola was asked about his future and links to Athletic Club in Spain: "It doesn't have anything to do with me. It is my club but, no, it doesn't affect the situation. I've said a lot of times I'm very happy here. I have a great relationship with the club and it's true that we will have to take a decision according to this, but it's a situation I have had most of my years as manager. It is not new to me."

Hear more from Iraola speaking to BBC Radio Solent about his future here

Bournemouth midfielder Ryan Christie told BBC Radio Solent it was a "strong performance despite the frustrating draw".

Hit play below to hear more from Christie or listen on BBC Sounds here

Did you know?

• Bournemouth are unbeaten in their past 11 Premier League games (W4 D7), equalling their longest such run in the top flight (also between November 2024 and January 2025).

• The Cherries are only the second team to have an unbeaten run of more than 10 games and a winless run of more than 10 matches in a same Premier League season, alongside Liverpool in 2002-03.

• Junior Kroupi became the first teenager to score a Premier League penalty against Manchester United and just the fourth to net home and away against them, after Nicolas Anelka in 1998-99, Jermain Defoe in 2001-02 and Matty Longstaff in 2019-20.

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on Bournemouth's performance

What did you make of Man Utd's display?

Come back on Saturday for a selection of your replies

Alejandro Jiménez and Armine Adli start for Bournemouth as Junior Kroupi drops to the bench.

Tyler Adams misses out for the hosts through injury.

Bournemouth XI: Petrovic; Alejandro Jiménez, Hill, Senesi, Truffert; Scott, Christie; Adli, Tavernier, Rayan; Evanilson.

Subs: Mandas, Brooks, Gannon-Doak, Smith, Diakite, Kroupi, Ünal, Tóth, Milosavljevic

Manchester United name an unchanged team for the trip to the Cherries.

The only change in the entire squad sees Tyler Fredricson replace Noussair Mazraoui on the bench.

Man Utd XI: Lammens, Dalot, Yoro, Maguire, Shaw, Casemiro, Mainoo, Diallo, Fernandes, Cunha, Mbeumo

Subs: Bayindir, Fredricson, Heaven, Malacia, T. Fletcher, Mount, Ugarte, Sesko, Zirkzee.

Sami Mokbel
Senior football correspondent

Image source, Getty Images

Bournemouth midfielder Alex Scott can count himself unlucky to have missed out on the latest England squad.

The 22-year-old earned his first call-up for November's games against Serbia and Albania but has not been included this time, despite Thomas Tuchel naming a 35-man squad for the friendlies against Uruguay and Japan.

Scott has been a consistent performer for Bournemouth this season, playing a key role under Andoni Iraola.

His omission will no doubt be a major disappointment for the young midfielder with the World Cup looming.

Tuchel is, of course, blessed with midfield options; James Garner of Everton is the latest player the England coach will evaluate in the forthcoming games.

It now remains to be seen whether Scott can regain his place in the squad for this summer's tournament in North America.

Chris Adams
BBC Sport journalist

The Premier League's draw specialists Bournemouth welcome Manchester United to Vitality Stadium on Friday night (20:00 GMT) with both sides seeking a positive result to take into the international break.

An uneventful 0-0 draw at second-bottom Burnley last week extended the Cherries' unbeaten run to 10 league games, the longest in the division, but it felt like an opportunity missed in terms of the chase for a European place.

Cherries drawing lots

The 14 draws recorded by Andoni Iraola's side this season are two more than any other team in Europe's top five leagues and five of those have finished 0-0 – again, a league-high tally.

Another stalemate on the Dorset coast would be their fifth in a row. No top-flight side has drawn as many consecutive matches since Fulham in December 2020-January 2021.

Bournemouth, in 10th place, are unbeaten in their last five against United and the teams played out a thrilling 4-4 draw at Old Trafford in November, when eight different goalscorers played their part in one of the most entertaining games of the season.

Since then, star man Antoine Semenyo has departed. He remains their top scorer and the Cherries have lacked a cutting edge in attack recently, drawing blanks in three of their last four.

They had 22 shots against Burnley without finding the net – the most they've ever had in a top-flight game without scoring – prompting Iraola to admit: "It's costing us a lot of points."

The Spaniard will be hoping the 500-mile round-trip takes its toll on the visitors. His side have won three of their four Friday night games in the league, while United have won just one of their five.

United's Champions League charge

Manchester United opened up a three-point gap between themselves in third and Aston Villa in fourth with a solid, if unspectacular, victory when the two sides met on Sunday.

A strong second-half showing gave head coach Michael Carrick five wins from five at Old Trafford in his second spell in charge, but he has found things a little trickier on the road, suffering his sole defeat against Newcastle United and relying on a late equaliser to hold West Ham United.

Portuguese playmaker Bruno Fernandes set up two goals in the Villa game to surpass David Beckham's club record of 15 assists in a single Premier League season. Now, with eight games remaining, he has the overall record in his sights.

The United captain, who has created six or more chances in each of his last three league games, has been involved in eight goals in his eight appearances against Bournemouth. He will need all his creative nous to unlock a home defence seeking its third clean sheet in a row.

With a 24-day wait until their next fixture, United and Carrick will be desperate to keep the feelgood factor going at a ground where they have lost just two of their eight away games in this competition (won four, drawn two).

Bournemouth have got an excellent record against Manchester United, who haven't beaten them home or away in any of their past five attempts.

United do look like a different team under Michael Carrick, and they have got some momentum as well as a Champions League spot in their sights.

But while Bournemouth used to be a team who I always fancied to score, and could be quite open, recently they have become a lot tighter at the back.

The Cherries have drawn their past four games, with three of those matches ending goalless, and the other one finishing 1-1.

They have now drawn 14 of their 30 league games this season - including a 4-4 thriller when these sides met at Old Trafford in December - and this smells of another draw to me.

Sutton's prediction: 1-1

Read the full predictions and have your say here

Josh Lobley
BBC Sport journalist

Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola has been speaking to the media before Friday's Premier League game against Manchester United at Vitality Stadium (kick-off 20:00 GMT).

Here are the key lines from his chat with BBC Radio Solent:

• Iraola said Tyler Adams and Lewis Cook had a chance to be available for Friday's match, but neither will be involved. He predicts they will be back in action after the international break. On the other hand, Ben Gannon-Doak "has a chance to play some minutes".

• On Alex Scott, who is in contention to be named in Thomas Tuchel's England squad: "He is playing incredibly well, probably in his best moment since he arrived. He is covering the six, eight, 10 and physically in a great moment."

• Iraola also says he is "very proud" of Rayan, who has earned his first Brazil call-up. He says it is also important for the club to have a Brazil international represent them and it shows how far the Cherries have come.

• Iraola was asked about his side's poor goalscoring run, drawing blanks in their past two matches: "In both games we had over 20 shots. The chances in both games have been more than enough to score. We have to be more ruthless and take every chance and make the keeper work for every shot."

• On Friday's opponents: "The way they are playing lately, it is hard to think that we will get a clean sheet. They are scoring for fun lately and they have top players. We will need to get goals to get something."

Hit play above to hear more from Iraola speaking to BBC Radio Solent or listen on BBC Sounds here

Follow all of Thursday's Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

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We are getting to the stage of the season where every Premier League team is managing injuries in their squad as the sheer volume and intensity of games begins to take its toll.

But who has been most affected by injuries across the campaign so far?

Ben Dinnery, from Premier Injuries Limited, has provided the data below, showing the number of domestic injuries each top-flight team has suffered, defined by a player missing at least one Premier League game.

The data has been taken from the opening weekend up to and including 18 March.

Despite this table listing domestic injuries, it is unsurprising that the top three of Arsenal, Chelsea and Aston Villa have all competed in European competition, with the Gunners still fighting on four fronts and the Blues also coming off the back of a much-shortened pre-season following their Club World Cup victory.

Perhaps more surprisingly, however, is the fact Arsenal's 31 domestic injuries so far comfortably leads the way, illustrating the strength and depth available to Mikel Arteta to still have his side nine points clear at the top of the table.

The graphic below shows Tottenham lead the way for days missed by injured players, illustrating the issues faced by Thomas Frank, who had to cope with long-term absentees including Dejan Kulusevski and James Maddison.

Both West Ham and Brentford are in the bottom three for domestic injuries and days missed through those injuries, while Arsenal and Villa are in the top three for both.

Chelsea drop down the table when looking at days missed, showing they have predominately suffered from short absences spread throughout the squad.

It is worth pointing out that Newcastle's two longest absences this season - Emil Krafth (120 days) and Yoane Wissa (88 days), who had not yet even trained with his new side, resulted from injuries picked up on international duty and are not factored into the figures.

Mark Mitchener
BBC Sport Senior Journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Bournemouth's fans may have been forgiven for joking about their march towards world domination on two fronts on Monday.

Overnight, minority owner Michael B Jordan became the first Premier League club owner to win an Oscar, after claiming the Best Actor category at the Academy Awards for his film Sinners.

Later the same day, winger Rayan received his first call-up to the Brazil senior squad, with the 19-year-old having evidently impressed national boss Carlo Ancelotti since his January move from Vasco da Gama.

The teenager will jet off to the USA after this weekend for Brazil's friendlies with France and Croatia in Boston and Orlando as he attempts to make a late run for Ancelotti's World Cup squad.

"I love his attitude. I don't know if he will come to the World Cup, but his future is bright," the Italian commented.

But while it opens the previously unfathomable prospect of the Cherries having two Brazil internationals in their forward line in Rayan and his "big brother" Evanilson, on the field they have been a little less "box office" than usual of late.

Despite stretching their unbeaten league run to 10 games on Saturday at Burnley, the last four of those games have been draws – three of them goalless.

Before this season, Bournemouth did not really 'do' goalless draws since Andoni Iraola's arrival as head coach, with only three 0-0s in his first two seasons combined. However, there have been five this term.

Having shipped 14 goals in the five league games that immediately preceded this 10-game unbeaten run, the Cherries will be pleased to have been more adept at keeping the back door closed – but has this come at the expense of attacking ambition?

At Turf Moor, the Cherries recorded 22 shots with an xG of 2.88, indicating that clinical finishing rather than ambition was the issue.

But while Bournemouth are unbeaten against teams currently in the bottom seven positions in the table – the first time this has happened in Iraola's three seasons in charge – another unbeaten run is put on the line on Friday as Manchester United, who have never beaten an Iraola side in five attempts, are the visitors.

Former Bournemouth players Brian Stock and Warren Feeney discuss their move to Vietnam on the latest episode of BBC Radio Solent's Cherries: Unpicked.

Listen below or on BBC Sounds here - and don't forget to subscribe to get each episode into your My Sounds feed.

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Sam Davis
Fan writer

Image source, Getty Images

Bournemouth are becoming a tough nut to crack, particularly since the turn of the year. Perhaps uncharacteristically, the Cherries now have a real steel about them, resulting in plenty of clean sheets and an improved resilience that must be admired.

For context, a summer clear out of the majority of their defensive unit provided an understandably shaky start defensively for Iraola's men. After losing Kerkez, Zabarnyi, Huijsen and Kepa, it was no surprise the defensive side of the Cherries took some time to form itself again.

Since then, the emergence of defender James Hill and improved performances from new goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic have certainly been a bonus. However, as is often the case, the balance has been a tricky one to find, as now, the Cherries are faltering at the top end of the pitch.

We used to think that Bournemouth's chaotic and offensive style always meant they'd score goals. Recently though, that hasn't been the case.

It's probably obvious to say, but offensive numbers have been negatively impacted by the loss of that "Semenyo magic". Plus, the absence of last season's regular goal threat, Justin Kluivert, has also cost us dear - so I guess it shouldn't come as a major surprise that the goals have dried up somewhat.

Is there a little more to this though? Andoni Iraola is known for his high-energy attacking football, and that has always meant a significant drop-off in the second half of seasons. Indeed, any side managed by Iraola has always gained fewer points in the second half of their respective campaigns.

So, perhaps Andoni is purposely adapting his style to compete more effectively during the run-in perhaps? If that's the case, a couple more wins would do it...

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