Bournemouth Echo's Andy Mitchell lifts the lid on Saturday's visitors
Bournemouth Echo’s multimedia sports reporter Andy Mitchell lifts the lid on Saturday's visitors AFC Bournemouth.
A difficult start to life in Premier League but two encouraging performances so far?
“Absolutely, they were quite unfortunate away at Liverpool in many respects. Captain Tommy Elphick felt that he should have scored but it was ruled out.
“So far the Cherries have performed very well. Against Aston Villa they were caught with a sucker-punch after missing three very good chances. At Liverpool, a lot has been made of the goal they scored which was clearly offside, while Liverpool showed glimpses of quality; Cherries showed they could match one of the best teams in the League. They certainly weren’t overawed by the occasion either.”
Who do you think are Bournemouth’s most important players?
“Matt Ritchie is the obvious one, he weighed in with a load of assists and goals last season, making a massive contribution to their promotion challenge.
“Andrew Surman is probably the unsung hero of the team, he works very hard, he sits quite deep but pops up all over the place. He’s calm and composed and keeps things ticking over. I’d say Tommy Elphick as well, he’s the heartbeat of the team, he gets everyone going and he’s risen through the ranks like a lot of the team have, from League One to the Premier League. He’s a big character in the side.”
There’s been a bit of transfer activity this summer, do you expect any more deals before the window shuts?
“Eddie Howe always keeps his cards very close to his chest but he has said that he is looking for one or two more players. It certainly wouldn’t surprise me if there were a few new faces that come in. He’s very big on squad regeneration, a few players left at the end of their contracts and he’s replaced them with better players.”
A difficult start to life in Premier League but two encouraging performances so far?
“Absolutely, they were quite unfortunate away at Liverpool in many respects. Captain Tommy Elphick felt that he should have scored but it was ruled out.
“So far the Cherries have performed very well. Against Aston Villa they were caught with a sucker-punch after missing three very good chances. At Liverpool, a lot has been made of the goal they scored which was clearly offside, while Liverpool showed glimpses of quality; Cherries showed they could match one of the best teams in the League. They certainly weren’t overawed by the occasion either.”
Who do you think are Bournemouth’s most important players?
“Matt Ritchie is the obvious one, he weighed in with a load of assists and goals last season, making a massive contribution to their promotion challenge.
“Andrew Surman is probably the unsung hero of the team, he works very hard, he sits quite deep but pops up all over the place. He’s calm and composed and keeps things ticking over. I’d say Tommy Elphick as well, he’s the heartbeat of the team, he gets everyone going and he’s risen through the ranks like a lot of the team have, from League One to the Premier League. He’s a big character in the side.”
There’s been a bit of transfer activity this summer, do you expect any more deals before the window shuts?
“Eddie Howe always keeps his cards very close to his chest but he has said that he is looking for one or two more players. It certainly wouldn’t surprise me if there were a few new faces that come in. He’s very big on squad regeneration, a few players left at the end of their contracts and he’s replaced them with better players.”
How do you expect Bournemouth to set up on Saturday?
“I think they’ll set up like they always do, to play good football, to retain possession and go for it. They don’t really know any other way, nor have the players to play any other way. They don’t have the personnel to play long-ball or aim to hit the channels. They’ll go out and attack, they have a sort of devil-may-care attitude which is great to watch and very eye-catching.”
As this is the last season at the Boleyn Ground, do you have a stand-out memory from your time covering games here?
“I’ve only actually been twice, once for the FA Trophy Final years ago and I was here last Saturday for the game against Leicester. What really stood out for me was the atmosphere before kick-off; it was a real cauldron of noise. The Boleyn Ground is no doubt one of the most iconic venues in England."
As you mentioned, you were here last weekend, who of the West Ham players impressed you?
“Dimitri Payet was very strong and you could see why a lot of people have been talking about him. He’s very creative as well as being strong and surprisingly quick. He’s a real danger man and he stood out in what was not the best performance by West Ham.”
Finally, what is your prediction for Saturday's score?
“It’s a tough one, but I always feel Bournemouth tend to play better away from home, something about the way they play often catches people out. They’ve been a bit unfortunate recently so I think their luck will turn, I’ll go 2-1 to Bournemouth.”
“I think they’ll set up like they always do, to play good football, to retain possession and go for it. They don’t really know any other way, nor have the players to play any other way. They don’t have the personnel to play long-ball or aim to hit the channels. They’ll go out and attack, they have a sort of devil-may-care attitude which is great to watch and very eye-catching.”
As this is the last season at the Boleyn Ground, do you have a stand-out memory from your time covering games here?
“I’ve only actually been twice, once for the FA Trophy Final years ago and I was here last Saturday for the game against Leicester. What really stood out for me was the atmosphere before kick-off; it was a real cauldron of noise. The Boleyn Ground is no doubt one of the most iconic venues in England."
As you mentioned, you were here last weekend, who of the West Ham players impressed you?
“Dimitri Payet was very strong and you could see why a lot of people have been talking about him. He’s very creative as well as being strong and surprisingly quick. He’s a real danger man and he stood out in what was not the best performance by West Ham.”
Finally, what is your prediction for Saturday's score?
“It’s a tough one, but I always feel Bournemouth tend to play better away from home, something about the way they play often catches people out. They’ve been a bit unfortunate recently so I think their luck will turn, I’ll go 2-1 to Bournemouth.”