Our 2023/24 Fantasy Premier League (FPL) team previews continue with Bournemouth.
In these guides, we’ll be looking at the best players for the upcoming season, taking a stab at predicted line-ups for Gameweek 1, reviewing pre-season and more.
You can read our stats-based review of the Cherries’ 2022/23 successful survival here.
Data in this article comes from our Premium Members Area, which you can access with a discounted pre-season subscription.
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BOURNEMOUTH: REASONS TO BE CHEERFUL
The exciting, ambitious appointment of head coach Andoni Iraola.
Letting Gary O’Neil go seemed harsh after he took a newly-promoted side just humbled 9-0 at Liverpool and secured their survival with several matches remaining. But Bournemouth’s owners wanted more.
A disciple of Marcelo Bielsa, the Basque boss is renowned for an intense attacking style that had Rayo Vallecano challenging for European spots until late tiredness kicked in. There was also a cup semi-final and three league wins from four against Barcelona.
It’s a big-risk, big-reward philosophy that uses front-footed defending to press opposing backlines and harass them until the ball has been won. No team in Europe’s major five leagues won possession in the final third more often (237 times) and only Bayern Munich forced more high turnovers that produced a shot than their 68.
Another reason for optimism is that several teams are seemingly having a bad time. Play-off winners Luton Town look low on quality, promoted Sheffield United are selling key players, Wolverhampton Wanderers are low on money and have just lost their manager, with Nottingham Forest goalless in their latest four friendlies.
Additionally, it’s great to see David Brooks (£5.0m) back playing football. He spent 535 days on the sidelines after being diagnosed with stage-two Hodgkin lymphoma but has starred in pre-season, scoring three times.
BOURNEMOUTH: REASONS TO BE FEARFUL
The worry with Iraola’s attacking tactics is that they could be exposed as naive.
Under O’Neil, they were already the league’s worst for conceding attempts (626), shots on target (402) and shots inside the box (204). They let in at least two goals on 20 occasions, with five of them seeing four shipped.
There were even two consecutive matches where they let a two-goal lead end in defeat. Losing key defensive midfielder Jefferson Lerma (£5.0m) to Crystal Palace could worsen things, so buying a replacement is imperative.
Similarly, underlying attacking stats were terrible. Bournemouth’s 358 shots were the fewest, ranking in the bottom four for goals (37), attempts on target (126) and expected goals (xG, 39.50).
SUMMER TRANSFER ACTIVITY
There was no incoming fee for either Lerma or Jordan Zemura but January loanee Hamed Traore‘s (£5.0m) move has been made permanent.
€15m arrival Romain Faivre was immediately loaned out to Lorient, so the two main additions are left-back Milos Kerkez (£4.5m) and winger Justin Kluivert (£5.0m).
The 19-year-old Kerkez secured 12 goal involvements from last season’s 52 AZ Alkmaar appearances. His attacking tendencies could become a useful weapon for FPL managers.
As for Kluivert, his career has been nomadic so far. The 24-year-old is already gracing his sixth top-flight competition but there were signs at Valencia that he could do well.
| Name | xG per 90 | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mohamed Salah | 0.56 |
| 2 | Marcus Rashford | 0.48 |
| 3 | Justin Kluivert | 0.41 |
| 4 | Alexis Mac Allister | 0.37 |
| 5 | Rodrigo | 0.37 |
| 6 | Antony | 0.33 |
Above: Comparing Kluivert’s 2022/23 expected goals (xG) per 90 to other FPL midfielders with at least 900 minutes
Meanwhile, goalkeeper Ionut Radu (£4.5m) enters on loan, while there have been recent links to names like Alex Scott, Joakim Maehle and Max Aarons.
PRE-SEASON REPORT
| Jul 13 | Bournemouth 4-0 Hibernian (Marbella Football Center) | Brooks (Moore assist), Anthony (Christie assist), Billing (Kluivert assist), Billing (Kluivert assist) |
| Jul 16 | Bournemouth 0-1 Maccabi Tel Aviv (Marbella Football Center) |
| Jul 25 | Southampton 2-3 Bournemouth (St Mary’s) | Ouattara (Christie assist), Christie (Anthony assist), Brooks (Traore assist) |
| Jul 29 | Bournemouth 1-3 Atalanta (Vitality Stadium) | Senesi (Solanke assist) |
| Aug 5 | Bournemouth 2-0 FC Lorient (Vitality Stadium) | Brooks (Ouattara assist), Moore (Senesi assist) |
As mentioned, Brooks has returned with a determination to make up for lost time. He’s scored against Lorient, Hibernian and Southampton. Also impressive over the summer were Ryan Christie (£5.0m) and Dango Ouattara (£5.0m).
However, Bournemouth’s set-piece frailties were showcased yet again in their 3-2 win at Southampton. Both Saints strikes derived from one, as a reminder that the Cherries conceded the Premier League’s most set-piece goals (21) in 2022/23. No side allowed more shots from them (183) or overall headed attempts (123).
Using our Pre-season Minutes Tracker, we see that Lewis Cook (£5.0m), Jaidon Anthony (£5.0m) and Illia Zabarnyi (£4.5m) played most often. All exceeded 300 minutes.
OPENING FIXTURES
Unfortunately, it’s a tricky start for Iraola. Our Season Ticker says it’s the third-worst fixture run between Gameweeks 1 and 7.
The opener at home to West Ham United offers potential for goals but it’s followed by six opponents that include five of last season’s top 10, plus Chelsea.
Then again, Bournemouth pulled off a few shocks last season. They made amends for the 9-0 Anfield humiliation by beating Liverpool 1-0 at home, also defeating Tottenham Hotspur on the road and drawing both times against Newcastle United.
PREDICTED GAMEWEEK 1 LINE-UP
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