BOURNEMOUTH
Make no mistake, as a newly promoted side, there was only one target for Bournemouth, and they achieved it reasonably comfortably in the end. After hitting the 38 point mark in mid-March, secured with a 3-2 win over Swansea, safety and survival, meaning another season in the Premier League, looked certain, two months in advance. It's very understandable that their intensity and performance levels seriously dipped after that, meaning that they only won one of their last eight games, although in their defence they did have a very tough run of fixtures, losing to Spurs, Liverpool, Chelsea and both Manchester clubs in that period.
But for Bournemouth, it was a strong spell between December and March that kept them in the league, after a shaky start to the campaign. Hit by injuries to key players, not least of which top scorer Calum Wilson, Bournemouth won just two of their opening fourteen games, against Sunderland and West Ham, and suffered a brutal couple of months where Spurs and City put five past them, they lost at home to Newcastle and they were knocked out of the league cup.
But a phenomenal 98th minute equaliser against Everton against all odds, a game which I watched live and in which Bournemouth played extremely well, proved the turning point in their season. Three wins back to back after that, including a win at Stamford Bridge and at home to Man United meant that they finished 2015 outside of the drop zone, and were only going up from there. Bournemouth were able to secure vital wins against teams around them, with Palace, Norwich, Swansea and Newcastle all swept aside by the Cherries, who also beat Southampton before mid-March, as well as vital draws with Sunderland, Leicester and Watford. Their back-to-back wins in March against Southampton and Swansea all but secured their Premier League status, and sure enough, even if they'd lost every single one of their last eight games, they would have stayed up.
Of course, it's not all positive from Bournemouth's perspective. Injuries or no injuries, keeping clean sheets proved to be a problem, with only seven over the campaign and at sixty seven goals conceded, they were the joint second worst defence in the league, although their tally of 45 goals scored was very impressive and between Wilson, Ritchie and excellent January signing Benik Afobe, they have some real firepower. Their defensive stats are also a little bit skewed, as they took some heavy defeats to some of the big teams, as Man City and Spurs put seventeen goals past them over their four games, with the likes of Chelsea, West Ham and Man United also relentless. Against teams in and around them, Bournemouth tended to do very well, and that is one of the crucial elements for a side like Bournemouth. You need to beat the sides that will be your relegation rivals and they very much did that.
Moreover, Bournemouth have some genuinely class players, in the likes of Josh King, Junior Stanislas and Matt Ritchie, all of whom are capable of playing at the top level. Moving forward, the task for Bournemouth will be to keep hold of their key players, to ensure that they don't drop off, and they also need to try and strengthen their defence if at all possible. This is a team crying out for a quality central defender.
However, the biggest question over Bournemouth's future lies with their manager, Eddie Howe, and how, should he go to Southampton, they replace him. Howe has been a revelation at Bournemouth and one of the crucial elements of their rise into and staying in the Premier League. If they lose him, the question will very much be how to make sure that they stay in the Premier League without him. Because as much as Bournemouth will want to try and kick on next season, you suspect that right now they would bite your hand off for 16th place next season.
And a 16th place position that they have thoroughly earned. Congrats Bournemouth, you will once again be a worthy addition to the 2016/17 season.
The Hard and Fast Section
- Congrats to Djokovic after he beat Murray comfortably.
- Stop trying to make Rooney for England happen. Play Alli.
- Amir back in Pakistan's test squad. Inflammatory.
- Drop Nick Compton. Please and thank you.
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