The Cherries welcome Burnley to Vitality Stadium this afternoon as they look to end their seven-game winless streak.
Scott Parker is making his first return to Bournemouth since being sacked by the club in 2023, following their 9-0 defeat to Liverpool.
Andoni Iraola’s team come into the game after arguably the game of the season, where they drew 4-4 with Manchester United at Old Trafford.
Ahead of this afternoon's fixture, here are our main talking points for the game:
Defensive record + Senesi Contract
Bournemouth’s defensive record has been disappointing this season, conceding 28 goals with 17 of those being over the past seven winless games. This is the fifth most conceded by a team in this Premier League campaign.
With Veljko Milosavljevic out for several months and Marcos Senesi reportedly leaving in the summer, the Cherries may need to bring in some defensive support over the January transfer window.
Iraola is hoping Senesi may still sign a new contract:
“Marcos [Senesi] for me is a very important player. You can see it because I start him every game. I would definitely like him to renew, but I think there is still seven months and for sure the club will take a decision. The most important thing is he’s performing very well and I hope we can keep him here and he decides after the season to stay with us.”
Chance to end streak
Today’s match against Burnley should be Iraola’s best chance to end the winless run his side are currently stuck in. The Clarets have lost seven straight games, conceding 16 in that time.
Although the Cherries have looked a lot better in their last two games, drawing against both Chelsea and Manchester United, they need to start taking all three points from games again and this fixture against 19th placed Burnley is exactly what they need to break the streak.
Iraola said: “The people in the streets always tell me every week, we need to win this weekend. It’s true that after a run of games without winning, you want to, because you want to make a step up in the standings. With the draws that we’ve got, they keep you there, but you know that you need wins to reach your goals, and I think we have a good chance tomorrow.”
Versatile Tavernier
Marcus Tavernier has played the deeper midfield role over the past two games and has seemingly impressed the Bournemouth fans with two solid performances. He also picked up a goal and assist against Manchester United on Monday.
Iraola said: “I think he has been very good in both games both in the offensive work and in the defensive side. He has had chances, not only the goals. Playing him there gives us a more offensive threat because his natural way of moving will put him in dangerous situations. We will probably lose a little bit defensively but I think the balance against teams that are very good has been quite good.”
The Cherries haven’t lost a league fixture to Burnley since February 2020 and will be looking to extend that run. The game kicks off at 3pm at Vitality Stadium.