Am I the only one who thinks of Nathan Ake when I see the Bournemouth badge? Odegaard. Zinchenkco. Neto. Tierney. Timber. Partey. Martinelli. Havertz. Saka. White. Tomiyasu. Not a bad XI (ten, actually), were they all available, but all of them face varying degrees of injury or loan status. Arteta has been a bit evasive on each player's availability, but it looks like we'll certainly be without Odegaard, Zinchenko, Tomiyasu, Neto, and Tierney. We'll probably be without Martinelli. I'd prefer to see Saka rested because it feels like we should be able to come away with a result against our hosts. Let's get into it then, shall we?
Bournemouth might sit 13th in the Prem table, but that does put them above Man U, so we'd do well to be wary. They're a tough one to suss out, putting up stiff competition at home to Newcastle and Chelsea while struggling away to Liverpool, Forest, and Leicester. They've conceded 10 goals, not bad for a side so close to the drop zone, but their real problem has been higher up the pitch. They've scored just eight goals, and six of those came against Everton at Goodison Park and at home to Southampton. Those two can boast of a combined goal difference of -19. While we may struggle to break them down, we may also find some comfort in feeling that they'll struggle to score.
Then again, it was us after all who went behind at home to Southampton, so, again, we'd do well to be wary. These are the kind of banana peels that we can't afford to slip on if we're to keep the pressure on Man City and Liverpool.
The last time we traveled to Dean Court launched Kai Havertz's "Waka Waka" chant after he converted a penalty to score his first goal in nine matches since signing for PS65m. That was just over a year ago, and suffice it to say, that PS65m is starting to look like a bargain considering that he's leading the line, a position that now commands a transfer fee upwards of PS100m. Should he in fact be available-he missed Die Mannschaft's matches against the Netherlands and Bosnia and Herzegovina-we should look to him to continue his purple patch.
He finished the 2023-24 season with nine goals and six assists in our last 14 matches; he's scored four goals and added an assist in our first seven matches to start the current campaign. If there's any knock against him, it's that he's done most of his scoring at the Emirates (all four in this campaign). It would be great to see him add to his tally away from home.
None of this should be taken to mean that Bournemouth will simply park the bus. Under Andoni Iraola, they're playing aggressively without exposing themselves. They top the Prem for ground covered, which indicates that they're not content to sit back and defend. They get up the pitch. They press and harass. If they weren't so wasteful with their chances, they might see themselves quite a bit higher on the table.
Having said all of that, we have to go in knowing that we have to both stifle these aggressive tactics and exploit them at the same time. If we can't take all three points from an opponent that is sitting just a few points above Man U, well, what are we even on about?
Let's hope that service into Havertz is frequent and fertile. I'm going to go out on a limb and suggest that we'll come away with an 0-2 result, three points secured courtesy of a brace from Havertz.
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