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Preview: AFC Bournemouth vs. Chelsea

Preview: AFC Bournemouth vs. Chelsea

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After winning just two of their opening five competitive fixtures of the 2024/25 season, it’s still proving difficult to know exactly what to expect from Chelsea as the Premier League returns from the first international window of the season. 

By Nathan Evans

A 2-0 defeat at home to Manchester City saw new manager Enzo Maresca begin the campaign on the back foot before victories over Servette in Europa Conference League action and a 6-2 thumping of Wolves on the road restored confidence amongst their supporters. Since then, though, a 2-1 loss in the second leg of that European tie and a 1-1 home draw with Crystal Palace – a match in which they really should have found a way to win – will have dampened spirits substantially.

That proves far from ideal preparation to face a Bournemouth side who have extended their fine form from last season into this new campaign and as a result, they head into this latest outing unbeaten through their opening three league outings. 

Despite the loss of star striker Dominic Solanke to Spurs for a club record fee, manager Andoni Iraola has done well to bring even more talent to the club, including the likes of Evanilson, Dean Huijsen and Luis Sinisterra, the latter of those playing a huge part in their most recent league fixture. 

That’s because the former Leeds winger netted a 96th minute winner at Goodison Park as the Cherries came back to beat Everton, a result that pushed Bournemouth into the top half of the table. That match further highlighted Bournemouth’s self-belief as despite trailing by two goals as late as the 87th minute, they still found a way to grind out an important win, the latest a side has ever turned a 2-0 deficit into victory in Premier League history.

That’ll have Chelsea fans worried ahead of this clash then, even if the Blues arrive on the South Coast unbeaten across their last five league meetings against the Dorset outfit. They’ve additionally lost just one of their last seven away top-flight games against Bournemouth too, but there’s plenty of areas where they could be hurt by the hosts this time around. 

That includes the potential threat posed by Antoine Semenyo who has been Bournemouth’s best performer so far this season. To this point, no player in the competition has attempted more shots (17) than the Ghanian winger and with two of those finding the back of the net, the Chelsea backline will need to be at their best to stop him adding to that tally. 

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Premier League with FotMob this season — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Preview: AFC Bournemouth vs. Chelsea

After winning just two of their opening five competitive fixtures of the 2024/25 season, it’s still proving difficult to know exactly what to expect from Chelsea as the Premier League returns from the first international window of the season. 

By Nathan Evans

A 2-0 defeat at home to Manchester City saw new manager Enzo Maresca begin the campaign on the back foot before victories over Servette in Europa Conference League action and a 6-2 thumping of Wolves on the road restored confidence amongst their supporters. Since then, though, a 2-1 loss in the second leg of that European tie and a 1-1 home draw with Crystal Palace – a match in which they really should have found a way to win – will have dampened spirits substantially.

That proves far from ideal preparation to face a Bournemouth side who have extended their fine form from last season into this new campaign and as a result, they head into this latest outing unbeaten through their opening three league outings. 

Despite the loss of star striker Dominic Solanke to Spurs for a club record fee, manager Andoni Iraola has done well to bring even more talent to the club, including the likes of Evanilson, Dean Huijsen and Luis Sinisterra, the latter of those playing a huge part in their most recent league fixture. 

That’s because the former Leeds winger netted a 96th minute winner at Goodison Park as the Cherries came back to beat Everton, a result that pushed Bournemouth into the top half of the table. That match further highlighted Bournemouth’s self-belief as despite trailing by two goals as late as the 87th minute, they still found a way to grind out an important win, the latest a side has ever turned a 2-0 deficit into victory in Premier League history.

That’ll have Chelsea fans worried ahead of this clash then, even if the Blues arrive on the South Coast unbeaten across their last five league meetings against the Dorset outfit. They’ve additionally lost just one of their last seven away top-flight games against Bournemouth too, but there’s plenty of areas where they could be hurt by the hosts this time around. 

That includes the potential threat posed by Antoine Semenyo who has been Bournemouth’s best performer so far this season. To this point, no player in the competition has attempted more shots (17) than the Ghanian winger and with two of those finding the back of the net, the Chelsea backline will need to be at their best to stop him adding to that tally. 

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every game from the Premier League with FotMob this season — featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.