This will be Bournemouth’s fifth consecutive season in the top flight of English football. Manager Eddie Howe has done a remarkable job to establish the south-coast side as one of the Premier League regulars as he continues to work with limited resources.
With a capacity of just over 11,300, Bournemouth’s Vitality Stadium is by far the smallest ground in the league and The Cherries are widely regarded as the Premier League’s overachievers.
Can AFC Bournemouth continue to progress in England’s top flight?
Last season
Bournemouth finished in 14th place last season, 11 points clear of the relegation zone. Whilst they scored more goals than the seven teams directly above them, only relegated Fulham and Huddersfield conceded more goals throughout the campaign.
The club had a number of standout performers last season. Striker Callum Wilson scored 14 league goals and grabbed 9 assists whilst combining with teammate Ryan Fraser for a record-breaking 12 goals.
David Brooks also had an impressive debut season. The Welshman notched up 7 goals and 5 assists in the league and the 22-year-old is likely to play an important role for the club next season.
Next season
Scoring goals isn’t a problem. In Callum Wilson, Joshua King and Dominic Solanke the club possess three proven strikers whilst the creativity of Ryan Fraser and David Brooks should continue to create goal scoring opportunities.
Bournemouth must tighten up at the back if they are to improve on last season’s 14th place finish. They ended up with a –14 goal difference at the end of the last campaign and conceded four or more goals on six occasions.
Promising England under-21 star Lloyd Kelly has been brought in to help sure up The Cherrie’s defence however Eddie Howe will be looking to more established players such as Nathan Ake and Steve Cook to step up and take responsibility.
Colombian Jefferson Lerma does an extremely effective job of protecting the back four whilst linking defence with attack. The combative midfielder’s performances will be key to Bournemouth’s progression next season.
If the team can sort out their defensive problems whilst maintaining last season’s level of top-quality attacking football, Bournemouth will put themselves in a great position to challenge for a finish in the top half of the table.
On the other hand, with many Premier League clubs spending big in the summer transfer window, there is a fear amongst the fans that Bournemouth may get left behind as they could struggle to compete with some of the wealthier mid-table sides.
Players in
Lloyd Kelly - £13.32m from Bristol City
Jack Stacey - £4.01m from Luton Town
Players out
Tyrone Mings - £20.07 to Aston Villa
Connor Mahoney - £990k to Millwall
Emerson Hyndman – Loan to Atlanta United
Marc Pugh – Released
Predicted league finish
15th. Whilst relegation shouldn’t be a worry for Bournemouth, it’s hard to see them improving on last season’s 14th place finish.
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