Great Goals: Gaston Ramirez – MIDDLESBROUGH vs. AFC Bournemouth (October 2016)

Middlesbrough found the going tough on their return to the Premier League in 2016-2017. One of their bright spots was the 2-0 home victory recorded over AFC Bournemouth in October 2016. The first goal on this autumn afternoon was one of the best solo goals of the season from the enigmatic Uruguayan, Gaston Ramirez.

A Bournemouth corner didn’t lead to any significant threat and when Adam Smith’s attempted shot was blocked, the ball fell into the path of Ramirez. The midfielder skipped past Harry Arter before increasing his speed, leaving on-loan Jack Wilshere trailing in his wake. With clear space ahead of him, Ramirez kept going and going, before cutting inside Andrew Surman’s desperate challenge and firing the ball beyond Artur Boruc.

Middlesbrough fans were elated and it won the Carling Goal of the Month for October 2016. It will be a lasting memory of Ramirez for them. He returned to Italian football after their relegation.

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Memorable Matches: AFC Bournemouth 3-3 Arsenal (January 2017)

Goalscorers: Charlie Daniels 16, Callum Wilson 20 PEN, Ryan Fraser 58, Alexis Sanchez 70, Lucas Perez 75, Olivier Giroud 90

Teams:

AFC Bournemouth: Artur Boruc, Nathan Ake, Steve Cook, Charlie Daniels, Simon Francis (SENT OFF), Harry Arter, Dan Gosling, Junior Stanislas, Ryan Fraser (Adam Smith 68), Josh King (Andrew Surman 63), Callum Wilson (Brad Smith 90)

Arsenal: Petr Cech, Laurent Koscielny (Gabriel 64), Shkodran Mustafi, Hector Bellerin, Nacho Monreal, Francis Coquelin (Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain 28), Granit Xhaka, Aaron Ramsey, Alex Iwobi (Lucas Perez 63), Olivier Giroud, Alexis Sanchez

Referee: Michael Oliver, Attendance: 11,202

Having recently beaten Liverpool FC, AFC Bournemouth were keen to add the name of Arsenal to an impressive list of scalps in January 2017. The two teams played out a thrilling post-New Year contest on the south coast. The home side did all of the early pressing and took the lead after 16 minutes. Charlie Daniels found acres of space, cut inside Hector Bellerin and showed great composure to defeat Petr Cech. It was a nice personal moment for Daniels who had previously enjoyed a spell in the Tottenham Hotspur youth academy.

The visitors were shell-shocked and went 2-0 down just four minutes later. Granit Xhaka lost possession and then needlessly bundled Ryan Fraser to the ground in the penalty area. There was no hesitation from Michael Oliver who pointed to the penalty spot. Callum Wilson did the rest, sending Cech the wrong way. Arsenal simply hadn’t got going in the first 45 minutes and worse was to come. 13 minutes into the second half, Bournemouth’s dominance was rewarded with a third goal. The excellent Fraser nudged Bellerin out of the way and with options limited in the penalty area, he beat Cech comprehensively. Bellerin might have been unfortunate as it looked like Fraser had fouled him in the challenge but Arsenal could have no complaints. They seemed lifeless in the first hour of the contest.

Arsene Wenger’s side finally came to life in the last 20 minutes. First, Alexis Sanchez headed home at the far post after Olivier Giroud had flicked the ball on into his path. It had been a frustrating evening for Sanchez whose evident annoyance about a lack of progress at the club was becoming more well-known within the public domain. Now though, he was starting to have an influence on the match and four minutes later, the deficit was reduced to 3-2. Lucas Perez scored his first Premier League goal with a delightful volley across the face of Artur Boruc’s goal. Nerves were starting to fray around The Vitality Stadium. The Cherries’ cause wasn’t helped when skipper Simon Francis was sent off for a rash tackle on Aaron Ramsey. It was his first red card in three years.

Six minutes of stoppage-time were signalled and in the second of those minutes, Arsenal got their equaliser. Xhaka redeemed himself for his earlier mistakes, producing a teasing cross into the box. Giroud beat Steve Cook to the header and got enough power on his connection to take it beyond Boruc’s despairing dive. Giroud’s celebration in trademark to his sensational ‘scorpion kick’ goal 48 hours earlier against Crystal Palace did divide opinion with his teammates afterwards.

Despite Arsenal showing some resolve in rescuing a point in the last 20 minutes, it was a sign of things to come away from home. The Gunners put in further feeble displays at West Bromwich Albion, Crystal Palace and Liverpool FC, losing all of these matches to mean they missed out on a top-four finish for the first time since 1996.

Memorable Matches: West Ham United 3-4 AFC Bournemouth (August 2015)

Goalscorers: Callum Wilson 11, 28, 79 PEN, Mark Noble 48 PEN, Cheikhou Kouyate 53, Marc Pugh 66, Modibo Maiga 82

Teams:

West Ham United: Darren Randolph, Aaron Cresswell, Carl Jenkinson (SENT OFF), Angelo Ogbonna (James Tomkins 35), Winston Reid, Cheikhou Kouyate, Pedro Obiang, Mark Noble, Kevin Nolan (Matt Jarvis 45), Dimitri Payet, Diafra Sakho (Modibo Maiga 73)

AFC Bournemouth: Artur Boruc, Steve Cook, Charlie Daniels, Tommy Elphick, Simon Francis, Eunan O’Kane, Andrew Surman, Max Gradel (Dan Gosling 85), Matt Ritchie (Adam Smith 90), Josh King (Marc Pugh 51), Callum Wilson

Referee: Jon Moss, Attendance: 34,977

Just over six years after avoiding relegation from the Football League on the last day of the season, AFC Bournemouth were embarking on their debut Premier League campaign in 2015-2016. After back-to-back 1-0 defeats to Aston Villa and Liverpool FC, Eddie Howe’s side were still looking for their first points or goal at this level when they travelled to Upton Park in August 2015.

West Ham United had already beaten Arsenal on the opening weekend but lost their first home match of the season a week earlier to eventual champions Leicester City. The Hammers were about to put in a dithering defensive display that was punished by the top-flight newcomers. It was only the sixth meeting between the sides in all-time history.

Bournemouth led after just 11 minutes. Simon Francis got the better of Aaron Cresswell on the left-hand side and drilled in a cross that received a first-time finish from Callum Wilson. Just before the half-hour mark, Cresswell made his second critical error of the match. Poor control in his own penalty area allowed Wilson in to score his second of the afternoon. The former England Under-21 forward was adapting brilliantly to the new level of football.

At half-time, Slaven Bilic withdrew skipper Kevin Nolan, replacing him with Matt Jarvis. It turned out to be Nolan’s last appearance for the club. He left by mutual consent days later. Three minutes into the second half, West Ham finally flickered into life. Mark Noble went down in the penalty area under a challenge from Josh King. Jon Moss pointed to the penalty spot and Noble made no mistake with the penalty. Five minutes later, the home side were back on level terms. Diafra Sakho’s shot was saved by Artur Boruc but the rebound was rifled into the top corner by Cheikhou Kouyate.

The Cherries were showing great character though despite surrendering their two-goal lead. Stand-in goalkeeper Darren Randolph had to be at his best, making several top saves before Bournemouth restored their lead on 66 minutes. Substitute Marc Pugh beautifully cut inside Carl Jenkinson and found the far corner with a precise finish beyond Randolph. With 11 minutes left, Jenkinson’s miserable afternoon was complete with a red card. Having been dispossessed by the dangerous Max Gradel, he dragged down the Ivorian in the penalty area and conceded a spot-kick as well as sealing his early shower. Wilson took the penalty and completed his hat-trick – becoming only the fifth player from a newly-promoted side to score a treble in Premier League history.

Modibo Maiga pulled a goal back for Bilic’s side but West Ham ran out of time for a second equaliser and Bournemouth held on for their first-ever Premier League victory.

Shock Results: Chelsea 0-3 AFC Bournemouth (January 2018)

Goalscorers: Callum Wilson 51, Junior Stanislas 64, Nathan Ake 67

Teams:

Chelsea: Thibaut Courtois, Cesar Azpilicueta, Davide Zappacosta, Gary Cahill, Andreas Christensen (Antonio Rudiger 28), Marcos Alonso, Tiemoue Bakayoko, N’Golo Kante, Ross Barkley (Cesc Fabregas 54), Eden Hazard, Pedro

AFC Bournemouth: Asmir Begovic, Nathan Ake, Steve Cook, Charlie Daniels, Simon Francis, Lewis Cook, Dan Gosling, Ryan Fraser, Jordon Ibe (Marc Pugh 83), Junior Stanislas (Josh King 71), Callum Wilson (Lys Mousset 90)

Referee: Lee Probert, Attendance: 41,464

Two seasons earlier, AFC Bournemouth had stunned Chelsea in their dreadful title defence, winning 1-0 at Stamford Bridge. Now, Eddie Howe’s side were keen to repeat this success as they were enjoying a five-game unbeaten run which had included victories over Everton and Arsenal in this period.

Chelsea themselves had no chance of defending the title they’d won in 2016-2017 but were in an eight-game unbeaten league sequence of their own and among the challengers for a top-four finish. They were also able to parade Olivier Giroud at half-time. The Frenchman had been prized away from Arsenal in a three-way deal which saw Michy Batshuayi go to Borussia Dortmund for the rest of the season and Arsenal break their club-record to snap up Dortmund marksman, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

Chelsea were missing Alvaro Morata and Willian to injury with Ross Barkley making his first Premier League start for the club since joining from Everton earlier in the January transfer window. The home side dominated possession but failed to create clear-cut chances in the first 45 minutes. Bournemouth were able to smother Eden Hazard, whilst defensive resources were stretched further for Antonio Conte when Andreas Christensen limped off after 28 minutes to be replaced by Antonio Rudiger.

Having kept Chelsea at bay, Bournemouth turned in a clinical 16-minute spell in the second half as they dismantled the reigning champions on their own patch. In the 51^st minute, Tiemoue Bakayoko was caught in possession and from this error, the Blues were brutally punished. Jordon Ibe slipped an inch-perfect pass in-between the centre-backs Rudiger and Gary Cahill and Callum Wilson timed his run perfectly to slip the ball underneath the advancing Thibaut Courtois. It was the first goal in the Premier League Chelsea had conceded at Stamford Bridge in 489 minutes.

13 minutes later, they had conceded again. This time, Wilson had turned goal provider, sliding a pass inside Cahill and Cesar Azpilicueta for Junior Stanislas to fire home. Chelsea looked like a broken side and three minutes later, Bournemouth had scored again. From a corner, Stanislas’ effort which looked to be sailing wide of the post was steered into the net by ex-Chelsea defender Nathan Ake.

On the bench, Giroud sank further beyond his training jacket. 24 hours earlier, he’d made his farewell appearance for Arsenal off the bench in a humbling defeat at Swansea. Now, it seemed like he’d joined another London sinking ship. It was defeats like this that cost Chelsea a place in this season’s Champions League and would ultimately cost Conte his job. Bournemouth finished 12^th with what was their finest result of the 2017-2018 season.

Memorable Matches: AFC Bournemouth 3-3 West Ham United (December 2017)

Goalscorers: James Collins 7, Dan Gosling 30, Nathan Ake 57, Marko Arnautovic 81, 89, Callum Wilson 90

Teams:

AFC Bournemouth: Asmir Begovic, Nathan Ake, Steve Cook, Simon Francis, Adam Smith, Lewis Cook, Dan Gosling, Ryan Fraser (Marc Pugh 86), Jordon Ibe, Josh King (Benik Afobe 65), Callum Wilson

West Ham United: Adrian, James Collins, Angelo Ogbonna, Aaron Cresswell, Pablo Zabaleta (Declan Rice 79), Artur Masuaku, Cheikhou Kouyate, Pedro Obiang (Andy Carroll 60), Manuel Lanzini, Andre Ayew (Javier Hernandez 61), Marko Arnautovic

Referee: Bobby Madley, Attendance: 10,596

Both AFC Bournemouth and West Ham United came into this Boxing Day fixture in serious trouble. The Hammers had only recorded two victories in their last 12 fixtures whilst Bournemouth sat in the bottom three after back-to-back 4-0 losses to Liverpool FC and Manchester City.

West Ham had enjoyed victory on their last away trip in the Premier League at Stoke City and made a flying start on the south coast. Skipper James Collins put the visitors infront after only seven minutes. From Aaron Cresswell’s corner, he made an early run to the near post, escaping the attentions of his Bournemouth counterpart, Simon Francis. He made no mistake with his header.

Bournemouth’s Josh King and West Ham’s Andre Ayew both squandered chances before Dan Gosling fired Bournemouth level on the half-hour mark with the Cherries first league goal in 344 minutes. Eddie Howe’s side deserved to be level going into half-time but were lucky to still have 11 players. Francis was booked by Bobby Madley for a high foot shown in a challenge against Cheikhou Kouyate. Replays showed he was incredibly fortunate to avoid the red card. It wasn’t the last good bit of fortune Bournemouth would get from the officials over the course of the afternoon.

12 minutes into the second half, the home side sensed their opportunity and took the lead. Nathan Ake finished sharply after a neat flick-on. However, they would squander the lead with nine minutes left. Asmir Begovic slipped in the wet conditions as he tried to make a routine clearance. It was a late Christmas gift for Marko Arnautovic who couldn’t believe his luck, rolling the ball into the empty net. That wasn’t the end of the drama for Begovic or Arnautovic. Eight minutes later, it looked like the Austrian had won it for the Hammers. Begovic capped an error-strewn display by spilling an effort from Javier Hernandez into the path of Arnautovic who was in the right place to tap home.

Just when it looked like David Moyes could celebrate a rare victory, his team were to be denied in cruel circumstances in stoppage-time. Ake’s powerful header ended up in the back of the net but was ruled out by linesman Simon Long for offside. Callum Wilson seemed to have interfered with play. However, after further consultation, referee Madley wrongly overturned the decision, awarding the goal even though there was an offside and hint of a handball from Wilson who was credited with the equaliser.

Whilst Bournemouth did have 26 efforts on-goal and therefore, deserved something out of this gripping contest, their equaliser in this fashion was a tough one to take for West Ham fans. Both clubs eventually escaped the depths of the relegation scrap to finish in 12^th and 13^th places respectively. This result actually was a turning point in Bournemouth’s season. They would enjoy a seven-match unbeaten streak off the back of this game.

Great Goals: Jermain Defoe – Crystal Palace vs. AFC BOURNEMOUTH (December 2017)

AFC Bournemouth had two Carling Goal of the Month winners in the 2017-2018 season. Whilst Charlie Daniels scored his thunderbolt against Manchester City in August, Jermain Defoe rolled back the years against Crystal Palace in December.

Now 35, Defoe is not afraid of scoring spectacular goals and this effort on a chilly Saturday afternoon in south-east London is among the best in his career. With half-time drawing closer, Bournemouth had just suffered a double blow, conceding goals in quick succession to Luka Milivojevic and Scott Dann. It looked like the Eagles were going to head into half-time leading 2-1. Defoe though, had other ideas.

There didn’t seem to be much danger when Defoe made an angling run to chase down Lewis Cook’s pass. Dann didn’t seem too worried to allow Defoe to get to the ball but the experienced forward swivelled suddenly and hit a sumptuous shot over a rattled Julian Speroni from almost an impossible angle.

It was the 201^st goal of Defoe’s glorious league career and has to rank among his top 10.

Great Goals: Charlie Daniels – AFC BOURNEMOUTH vs. Manchester City (August 2017)

The match between AFC Bournemouth and Manchester City on the third weekend of the 2017-2018 season saw plenty of late drama and an early contender for Goal of the Season.

The home side had lost both of their first two matches against West Bromwich Albion and Watford without scoring, so what a way this was to score their first goal of the 2017-2018 season. After Dan Gosling’s cross had been headed away by Vincent Kompany, the ball dropped to left-back Charlie Daniels. From the corner of the penalty area, Daniels hit a delicious first-time volley that zipped into the back of the net giving Ederson absolutely no chance.

Pep Guardiola’s side came back to win 2-1 in stoppage-time but Charlie’s cracker was good enough to win him both Bournemouth’s Goal of the Season and the first Goal of the Month of the 2017-2018 campaign.

Shock Results: AFC Bournemouth 2-1 Manchester United (December 2015)

Goalscorers: Junior Stanislas 2, Marouane Fellaini 24, Josh King 54

Teams:

AFC Bournemouth: Artur Boruc, Steve Cook, Charlie Daniels, Simon Francis, Adam Smith, Harry Arter (Eunan O’Kane 86), Andrew Surman, Dan Gosling, Matt Ritchie, Junior Stanislas, Josh King (Glenn Murray 65)

Manchester United: David de Gea, Cameron Borthwick-Jackson, Daley Blind, Paddy McNair (Phil Jones 90), Guillermo Varela, Michael Carrick, Marouane Fellaini (Nick Powell 74), Jesse Lingard (Andreas Pereira 31), Juan Mata, Anthony Martial, Memphis Depay

Referee: Anthony Taylor, Attendance: 11,334

Confidence was seeping through the AFC Bournemouth squad ahead of this fixture in December 2015. Eddie Howe’s side had shown tremendous resilience to rescue a 3-3 home draw with Everton a fortnight earlier before pushing Jose Mourinho closer to the exit door at Chelsea with a surprise win at Stamford Bridge.

They still weren’t fancied to get a result against a wounded Manchester United. They were bound to exact some kind of reaction to their dismal exit from the group stages of the UEFA Champions League in midweek to Bundesliga side VfL Wolfsburg. Louis van Gaal was hamstrung by injuries to several of his key players, including Chris Smalling, Antonio Valencia and Wayne Rooney.

Bournemouth were keen to make a fast start and with a bit of help from the windy conditions on the south coast, they took the lead inside two minutes. Junior Stanislas took a corner which curled directly into the back of the net. It was his third goal in two matches and all the Bournemouth players immediately ran towards midfielder Harry Arter, who was playing just days after his partner lost their child at birth. All of Bournemouth’s players wore black armbands as a mark of respect and this showed their terrific team unity for a teammate’s personal grief.

Question marks for the opening goal would be aimed at David de Gea. The usually reliable Spaniard had completely misjudged Stanislas’ corner and whilst Anthony Martial’s lack of intent in helping out at the far post didn’t help, De Gea didn’t need anyone to tell him he shouldn’t have been beaten directly from a corner.

Manchester United equalised in the 24^th minute. Belgian midfielder Marouane Fellaini scored a scruffy goal from close-range. To show the lack of finishing edge from Van Gaal’s side, it was just their sixth Premier League goal in their last seven outings. The out-of-form Martial squandered two great opportunities to hand the Red Devils the lead and his wastefulness would cost his team dear in the second half. From another set-piece, Bournemouth regained their lead. Matt Ritchie played a corner across the box and no defender took responsibility to mark Josh King. His half-volley had an awkward look to it but it nestled in the bottom corner and the Cherries were back infront.

This time, there was no response. Fellaini looked despondent when he was replaced for youngster Nick Powell in the 74^th minute and the scoreline could have been even greater if the hero of Stamford Bridge, Glenn Murray, taken two late opportunities of his own.

This result compounded a miserable week for everyone connected with Manchester United and Van Gaal was about to face serious questions about his job. For Howe, the sky was the limit and these unexpected back-to-back successes spearheaded the Cherries clear of the bottom three. They would finish 16^th in their debut Premier League campaign.

Memorable Matches: AFC Bournemouth 3-3 Everton (November 2015)

Goalscorers: Ramiro Funes Mori 25, Romelu Lukaku 36, Adam Smith 80, Junior Stanislas 87, 90+8, Ross Barkley 90+6

Teams:

AFC Bournemouth: Adam Federici (Ryan Allsop 45), Charlie Daniels, Steve Cook (Adam Smith 45), Sylvain Distin, Simon Francis, Dan Gosling, Andrew Surman, Harry Arter (Glenn Murray 76), Matt Ritchie, Junior Stanislas, Josh King

Everton: Tim Howard, Seamus Coleman, Brendan Galloway, Ramiro Funes Mori, John Stones, Gareth Barry, James McCarthy (Tom Cleverley 68), Ross Barkley, Gerard Deulofeu (Aaron Lennon 86), Arouna Kone (Darron Gibson 90), Romelu Lukaku

Referee: Kevin Friend, Attendance: 11,228

This was AFC Bournemouth’s debut season in the Premier League and manager Eddie Howe’s demand to play attractive football meant the supporters were going to be in for plenty of thrills and spills. They played Everton in November 2015 in what turned out to be an astonishing match.

Everton went into the game in great goalscoring form, having scored 11 goals in their last three league encounters and they did a lot of the early pressing. Adam Federici had to deny forwards Arouna Kone and Romelu Lukaku twice before the visitors took the lead on 25 minutes. Argentine defender Ramiro Funes Mori headed home into the roof of the net from a corner. It was 2-0 nine minutes later. Gerard Deulofeu found Lukaku who demonstrated his power to hold off Steve Cook’s advances, before driving in a shot past Federici’s near post. It was his 10^th goal of the Premier League season – matching his tally from the previous campaign.

Bournemouth looked in trouble and were forced into two half-time changes, most notably in-goal where Ryan Allsop came on for his Premier League debut after injury forced Federici off. They rallied in the second half with Charlie Daniels testing Tim Howard’s reflexes before Adam Smith set-up a grandstand final 10 minutes.

Everton failed to properly clear a corner and from 25-yards out, the full-back tried his luck and fired a shot into the top corner for only his second-ever goal for Bournemouth. He was given the space and properly punished Everton who were getting lax with the comfortable advantage they held. With three minutes left, it looked like the Cherries had rescued an improbable point. Josh King drove down the right-hand side, exposing youngster Brendan Galloway and he squared the ball back for Junior Stanislas to fire in the equaliser. Bournemouth had shown tremendous spirit but there was still time for more late drama.

Five minutes of stoppage-time were signalled by the fourth official and with what looked like being the last attack of the match, Everton regained their lead. Kone and Seamus Coleman were involved in the build-up and despite a good challenge to deny the Republic of Ireland international from ex-Everton defender Sylvain Distin, Ross Barkley was in the right place and his shot crept past the youngster Alsop’s defences at the near post.

However, there was incredibly more time added on by referee Kevin Friend and in the eighth minute of stoppage-time, Smith found Daniels in space on the left-hand side. The left-back delivered an inch-perfect cross and Stanislas connected perfectly with a flying header which gave Howard no chance. This concluded an extraordinary finish to one of the best matches of the 2015-2016 season.

The Clubs: AFC Bournemouth

All data correct upto 23^rd February 2018

All-Time Premier League Record

Played	Won	Drew	Lost	Scored	Conceded	Goal Difference	Points	No of Seasons
103	31	26	46	131	175	-44	119	3

 

Most Premier League Appearances

Player	Appearances Total
Steve Cook	97
Charlie Daniels	95
Simon Francis	95
Adam Smith	90
Josh King	89
Dan Gosling	78
Andrew Surman	77
Harry Arter	69
Artur Boruc	67
Marc Pugh	64

 

Most Premier League Goals

Player	Goals Total
Josh King	25
Callum Wilson	18
Junior Stanislas	13
Benik Afobe	10
Steve Cook	8
Charlie Daniels	8
Ryan Fraser	7
Dan Gosling	6
Marc Pugh	5
Nathan Ake	5

 

Biggest Premier League Victories

Match	Date	Season
AFC Bournemouth 6-1 Hull City	15th October 2016	2016-2017
AFC Bournemouth 4-0 Middlesbrough	22nd April 2017	2016-2017
AFC Bournemouth 4-0 Huddersfield Town	18th November 2017	2017-2018
AFC Bournemouth 3-0 Norwich City	16th January 2016	2015-2016
Swansea City 0-3 AFC Bournemouth	31st December 2016	2016-2017
Chelsea 0-3 AFC Bournemouth	31st January 2018	2017-2018
Newcastle United 1-3 AFC Bournemouth	5th March 2016	2015-2016
AFC Bournemouth 2-0 Sunderland	19th September 2015	2015-2016
AFC Bournemouth 2-0 Southampton	1st March 2016	2015-2016
AFC Bournemouth 2-0 Swansea City	18th March 2017	2016-2017

 

Worst Premier League Defeats

Match	Date	Season
Manchester City 5-1 AFC Bournemouth	17th October 2015	2015-2016
AFC Bournemouth 1-5 Tottenham Hotspur	25th October 2015	2015-2016
AFC Bournemouth 0-4 Manchester City	2nd April 2016	2015-2016
Manchester City 4-0 AFC Bournemouth	17th September 2016	2016-2017
Tottenham Hotspur 4-0 AFC Bournemouth	15th April 2017	2016-2017
AFC Bournemouth 0-4 Liverpool FC	17th December 2017	2017-2018
Manchester City 4-0 AFC Bournemouth	23rd December 2017	2017-2018
Everton 6-3 AFC Bournemouth	4th February 2017	2016-2017
AFC Bournemouth 1-4 Chelsea	23rd April 2016	2015-2016
Huddersfield Town 4-1 AFC Bournemouth	11th February 2018	2017-2018

 

Managers

Manager	No of Seasons managed	Left the Club
Eddie Howe	3

 

Highest Home Attendances

Match	Date	Attendance Figure	Season
AFC Bournemouth 2-1 Burnley	13th May 2017	11,388	2016-2017
AFC Bournemouth 1-2 Liverpool FC	17th April 2016	11,386	2015-2016
AFC Bournemouth 3-2 West Ham United	11th March 2017	11,369	2016-2017
AFC Bournemouth 1-4 Chelsea	23rd April 2016	11,365	2015-2016
AFC Bournemouth 0-2 Arsenal	7th February 2016	11,357	2015-2016
AFC Bournemouth 1-3 Manchester United	14th August 2016	11,355	2016-2017
AFC Bournemouth 2-1 Manchester United	12th December 2015	11,334	2015-2016
AFC Bournemouth 1-5 Tottenham Hotspur	25th October 2015	11,332	2015-2016
AFC Bournemouth 1-0 Everton	24th September 2016	11,291	2016-2017
AFC Bournemouth 0-2 Crystal Palace	31st January 2017	11,286	2016-2017

 

Intro

In 2008, AFC Bournemouth entered administration and a year later, escaped relegation to the non-league on the final day of the season. Seven years on, they were playing in the top-flight in one of the most remarkable journeys in recent times. Eddie Howe’s side are always entertaining to watch and he has never altered his style of play. It saw them finish a fantastic ninth in the table in just their second season in the Premier League.

 

2015-2016

Having won promotion to the top-flight as Championship champions, AFC Bournemouth were a breath of fresh air in 2015-2016 and comfortably survived in their first season at this level. After two narrow opening defeats to Aston Villa and Liverpool FC, they defeated West Ham United 4-3 at Upton Park to register their first Premier League victory. Callum Wilson not only scored the Cherries first goal at this level but he scored the first hat-trick of the season.

Back-to-back 5-1 defeats to Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur left Eddie Howe’s side in the bottom three at the end of October and they were having no luck with injuries. ACL injuries ended the season of summer arrival Tyrone Mings and would put Wilson and Max Gradel out for many months. Bournemouth rallied though in early December, pulling off stunning wins in successive weekends. First, Glenn Murray’s header off the bench defeated freefalling champions Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. That was followed by a home win over Manchester United with ex-Red Devil Josh King scoring the winner.

They always remained outside the bottom three from that point onwards and even hit the dizzy heights of 11^th spot with a 2-1 away win at Aston Villa in April. Despite collecting just one point from their last five games, Bournemouth’s season had been a qualified success which also saw them break their transfer record to sign Benik Afobe from Wolverhampton Wanderers.

 

2016-2017

Bournemouth’s 127^th year of existence started badly with defeats in the first two matches for the second successive season. Their first win came in their fourth match, with the returning Callum Wilson scoring the winning goal against West Bromwich Albion.

In October, newly-promoted Hull City were well-beaten 6-1 in what is the club’s biggest Premier League victory. On-loan defender Nathan Ake’s header a month later heralded a 1-0 success at Stoke to see Howe’s side chalk up their first away win of the season. Two weeks later, they were involved in a sensational comeback against Liverpool FC.

Liverpool arrived unbeaten since the second weekend of the campaign and led 2-0 and 3-1 but Bournemouth’s resolve, resilience and team spirit were shown to the maximum as they won 4-3 with Ake scoring the winner in stoppage-time. His departure back to parent club Chelsea in January upset the balance of the club in the early weeks of 2017 and a run of five defeats in seven games put them in the thick of a relegation battle.

A point at Old Trafford in early March started a renaissance in the closing weeks that saw the Cherries move firmly away from any danger. This was despite a second ACL injury for the luckless Wilson and the lack of any consistency from Arsenal loanee Jack Wilshere. A broken leg in mid-April ended Wilshere’s campaign prematurely where he got some useful match practice but didn’t make the impact supporters hoped for on his arrival.

With 16 goals, Josh King sparkled and he scored his maiden hat-trick at this level in a 3-2 win over West Ham United. His late goal on the final Saturday in April at The Stadium of Light also condemned Sunderland to relegation. 11 points from their last five games saw Bournemouth finish a fantastic ninth in the table, ahead of the likes of West Ham, Leicester City and Stoke.

 

2017-2018

Hopes were high for Bournemouth’s third Premier League term which saw the return of Ake on a permanent deal from Chelsea and the experienced Jermain Defoe added to the striking options. Once again, they made a slow start and picked up no points from their first four matches.

Victory in a local derby match with Brighton & Hove Albion on Friday Night Football was the first step in the right direction, with Defoe scoring his first goal to win the match. Wilson returned from his latest lay-off and reminded everyone of his qualities with a fantastic hat-trick in a 4-0 victory over Huddersfield Town in November. However, Bournemouth would spend Christmas in the bottom three after successive 4-0 losses to Liverpool FC and Manchester City.

2018 looks far rosier. Bournemouth put together their best-ever run of seven matches unbeaten before a recent 4-1 reverse at Huddersfield. This included a stunning 3-0 victory at Stamford Bridge over Chelsea. The journey to the golden sky for the highly-rated Howe and his exciting side continues.

Shock Results: Chelsea 0-1 AFC Bournemouth (December 2015)

Goalscorers: Glenn Murray 82

Teams:

Chelsea: Thibaut Courtois, Abdul Baba Rahman (Bertrand Traore 83), Gary Cahill, Branislav Ivanovic, Kurt Zouma, Nemanja Matic, Cesc Fabregas (Loic Remy 83), Oscar (Diego Costa 45), Willian, Eden Hazard, Pedro

AFC Bournemouth: Artur Boruc, Steve Cook, Charlie Daniels, Simon Francis, Adam Smith, Harry Arter, Dan Gosling, Andrew Surman, Matt Ritchie, Junior Stanislas, Josh King (Glenn Murray 80)

Referee: Mike Jones, Attendance: 41,631

Having cruised to the title in 2014-2015, Chelsea were making a real mess of their title defence. They had already suffered seven defeats and went into this game sitting in a lowly 14^th place in the table, having amassed just 15 points from their first 14 matches.

Jose Mourinho’s side had at least tightened up defensively ahead of the visit of newly-promoted AFC Bournemouth. They’d gone 306 minutes without conceding in all competitions. Bournemouth had shown great resilience in coming from behind twice to take a point off Everton in their last match. However, Eddie Howe’s side were in the drop zone and without a league win since September.

Mourinho had controversially left Diego Costa out of his starting line-up for the trip to Tottenham Hotspur a week earlier and he kept the Spaniard on the bench for this one too, electing to play the out-of-form Eden Hazard in a ‘false no.9’ position. However, the home side offered very little in the first half and Costa was therefore summoned from the bench at the interval.

Bournemouth could have been ahead before half-time, as Josh King was denied on no fewer than three occasions by the returning Thibaut Courtois, who was back in the team after three months out through injury. Costa’s impact was almost immediate on his arrival. First, he narrowly missed making contact on a vicious cross from Branislav Ivanovic. Next, the temperamental Spaniard had an effort blocked by visiting goalkeeper Artur Boruc. Then, he claimed for a penalty when his cross was blocked by the recovering Simon Francis with his arm. As it wasn’t a natural movement, his protests fell on deaf ears and Mike Jones waved play on.

Bournemouth looked comfortable throughout, driven on by Harry Arter, who was immense in central midfield. He managed to take control of the game, neutralising any dangerous threat that might have been posed by Cesc Fabregas. Sensing there might be an opportunity to take more than a point back to the south coast; Howe threw on his summer signing Glenn Murray with 10 minutes left to play. 99 seconds later, he had made the decisive impact.

Junior Stanislas produced a wonderful corner which Courtois flapped at, under pressure from Dan Gosling. Steve Cook stabbed the ball back across the face of the goal and Murray beat his teammate Charlie Daniels to the crucial contact, heading the ball into the back of the net and sending the away supporters into ecstasy. There were doubts about whether Murray was offside when he connected with Cook’s pass but the goal counted.

Bournemouth comfortably saw out the final 10 minutes to record one of the greatest results in the club’s history. They finished 16^th whilst Chelsea recovered from this defeat to scrape into the top 10. However, it would be without Jose Mourinho. He was sacked less than a fortnight after this shock defeat – Chelsea’s first at home to a newly-promoted side since Charlton Athletic won in April 2001.

Premier League Files: Matt Ritchie

Premier League Career: Portsmouth (2010), AFC Bournemouth (2015-2016), Newcastle United (2017-PRESENT)

After the briefest taste of Premier League football with Portsmouth in 2010, Matt Ritchie was part of AFC Bournemouth’s historic first campaign at this level and is back in the top-flight this season as he looks to play a role in keeping Newcastle United away from relegation.

Ritchie got his big break with Portsmouth. A part of their academy since the age of 13, Ritchie made his Premier League in April 2010. It was largely down to the club’s crippling injury list and the huge financial strain they were in too. He played 79 minutes in the defeat to Wigan Athletic and admitted it was a dream come true to make his debut for the club where he’d done all of his education with.

It looked like he was set for a bright future at Fratton Park but soon had a disagreement with new manager Steve Cotterill and was frozen out of his plans. He was loaned out to Swindon Town, making 16 appearances before the Robins’ agreed to make the loan move a permanent deal. Although Swindon were relegated to League Two at the end of the campaign, he was awarded the club’s Player of the Season award.

Ritchie remained a Swindon player until January 2013 and worked under Paolo di Canio, who was the club’s manager. His performances raised eyebrows with higher-profile clubs and AFC Bournemouth were among those admirers. Di Canio insisted he would not be sold, claiming he was worth £2 million. In March 2012, Ritchie won the League Two Player of the Year and was one of Swindon’s two players in the PFA Team of the Year.

Bournemouth eventually got their man in January 2013, after Swindon’s board decided their offer was too good to turn down. Di Canio was furious with the hierarchy and ultimately, Ritchie’s departure would turn out to be the catalyst for his exit from the County Ground. Ritchie joined a team in peak form and his first goal for the club in a 4-1 win over Bury starting a run of eight successive victories, shooting the club towards the Championship.

In 2014-2015, Matt won international recognition from Scotland. Despite being born in Gosport, Ritchie qualified to play for the Scots through his Scottish father and he made his debut in a friendly match against Northern Ireland. In club football, he had a sizzling campaign, scoring 11 times and setting up 13 further strikes for his teammates. Bournemouth went up as champions and would be playing Premier League football for the first time in their history – just six years after being close to relegation to the Conference.

His first top-flight strike was a venomous volley to help the Cherries beat Sunderland 2-0 in September 2015 and earn them their first home win in the Premier League. A month later, Ritchie scored the club’s fastest goal of the season, netting inside a minute against Tottenham Hotspur although it ended in a horrid 5-1 home defeat.

Bournemouth finished 16^th in their first Premier League campaign, with Matt chipping in with four goals, so it was a surprise to see him drop down a division to Newcastle United in July 2016, signing a five-year deal to move to Tyneside. He scored 16 goals in all competitions, only being outscored by Dwight Gayle as Newcastle comfortably earned promotion back to the Premier League at the first attempt.

As of January 2018, Ritchie has featured 23 times for Newcastle in the Premier League and has created more chances for his teammates than any other Magpies’ player this season. He has the quality to change matches with dangerous crosses and inch-perfect passes. However, he hasn’t scored yet this season and it will help Rafa Benitez out in their relegation battle to see him rediscover his goalscoring touch as the season progresses.