AFC Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola has said that the Cherries must be careful with their ‘special winger’ Luis Sinisterra, as the 25-year-old continues his return from a lengthy spell out.
The Colombian suffered a hamstring injury back in October and a number of complications during the rehabilitation process kept him sidelined for almost four months, before he returned to action last weekend, as an 88th minute substitute in Bournemouth’s 3-1 win at Southampton.
Ahead of the visit of Wolves on Saturday afternoon, Iraola spoke to the media, and insisted that despite Sinisterra’s quality, he would not be overplaying the forward.
Iraola said: “I think Sini (Luis Sinisterra) is a special winger, he can make a difference, but we have to be careful with him because he has been out for a while.
“He has struggled with injuries even before he came here, when he was with Leeds.
“When he has been on a run of good training and good games, getting good minutes, I think he has given us a very good level.
“The problem is to keep him fit, this is probably the key part and that’s why we have to be careful.”
Despite exercising caution around Sinisterra’s continuing return to the Cherries side, Iraola was full of praise for the former Leeds man, he said: “Every time Sini is on the pitch he’s a threat.
“He can make things happen one against one, he’s a good finisher for a winger.
“He could even play as a number nine, because he has the quality, especially in terms of finishing.
“His return is a great addition for us.”
Sinisterra has only started eight Premier League games since he joined the club in the summer of 2023, and Iraola is hoping the winger can now stay fit for a prolonged period of time, to allow him to put a run of games together.
Iraola said: “We want to have him for not just the next game
“We have to make sure he can have a good stint with us, having quality minutes in training and in games.
“I hope he can personally find the level to be available at least, because the quality is there.”