Peter Neil Bell's Blog: Cherry Chimes, page 33

Play or be relegated threat to bottom three

I wondered how long it would take to arguments to really get going, rather than polite suggestions from the Premier League. It appears a number of clubs, Aston Villa, Norwich and Brighton, for example, have been less than keen on playing the remaining matches of this season at neutral venues, which I think is understandable as teams in the bottom half have found points hard to come by. Home advantage is a big help with familiarity of stadiums. But the Daily Mail reports that the Premier League has said if the bottom clubs vote against their dream 'Project Restart' they'll relegate the bottom three with a vote by the other clubs.

Home advantage means everything for bottom clubs.It's getting childish and petty. The Premier League is stamping its feet and is lobbying the government to get them onside, so it can make its money and get worldwide coverage of the remaining games as a big spectacle, raising the profile of the league even higher. It doesn't care about the fans not being able to attend the games. It doesn't care which teams are relegated, as all the big clubs are well and truly safe. It just wants to see Liverpool gain the title that they deserve and tie up all the loose ends, on relegation and European places, so that their precious league is able to be completed.

Advertisement Eddie Had a Dream -now just 9.99!I'd like to be a fly on the wall for the meeting next year to see how AFCB respond. I imagine they will be quite timid and go along with whatever is agreed as good little boys, but there may be more of a protest from the likes of Watford, Brighton and West Ham who are currently above the bottom three and I still think that can scupper the 'Project Restart'. West Ham have constantly taken a stance of 'null and void' as proposed by Karren Brady and I haven't heard any different noises coming from the London stadium since. Brighton's Chairman has been quite vocal about wanting to play at the Amex for Brighton's home games and Watford are going to be fighting tooth and nail to stay up, after getting out of the bottom three.
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In the end it may come down to the club's medical staff making the final decision on 'Project Restart'. If the medics say it's really not on for the players safety, what will the Premier League do? I get the impression that they will follow the example set by France, end the season and take the positions as they stand now, which would mean relegation by a goal difference of one for the Cherries.

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Previous post on Cherry Chimes - Gosling is set on AFCB for rest of career

Gosling is set on AFCB for rest of career

Bournemouth's midfield goal-getter, Dan Gosling has broken his silence on his club preference to the end of his career - he wants to stay at AFC Bournemouth. He told Sky Sports that he has a child who is starting school in September and has no plans to be moving on. I think it is great to hear that Gosling will be part of the Cherries for some time going forward which could be really important if the Cherries don't keep their Premier league status.
Gosling has no plans to leave AFCB.Gosling is 30 and still probably has a few years left in him at the top of the game. He has the heart and experience to be a solid midfielder, if Bournemouth do start to see the likes of Jefferson Lerma move on after an unsuccessful relegation struggle. Let's hope that is not what happens, but Bournemouth will need players who know what it was like to win promotion and to try and get them back there, if they do face the drop.

Advertisement Eddie Had a Dream -now just 9.99!Many of the big names could move on and it will be important for Eddie Howe to secure a few names who can put in the graft and value what a trip AFCB fans have been on in the last few years. Gosling can still rival Lerma and Billing for a starting place, as I remarked in my post of 20 April and 23 April.
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While Gosling seems to be missing the relationships he has with the rest of the squad, he seems confident that the Cherries can stay in the Premier League. It will be harder for players such as Gosling, who won promotion with the club, to see it fall and he would be one of the players I'd like to see playing in some of the remaining games, as he will put his heart and sole into it. I'd like to think all the others will as well, but when the club means so much to players like Gosling, those are the players that I think Howe should be picking for some of the most important games in the club's history.

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Previous posts on Cherry Chimes - 60 minute games could see AFCB safe

60 minute games could see AFCB safe

I had to read a Daily Mail article a couple of times just to make sure it wasn't April Fools Day, but the PFA's Chief Executive Gordon Taylor says there is a proposal that the remaining games of the Premier League season be held over 60 minutes rather than 90. This would also affect the current standings so, while Liverpool would still be way ahead, past games would be judged on score lines after 60 minutes and it would mean some drastic changes in league positions.
Time could be cut short on future games and even those that have already been played.You can see the altered league table on the Daily Mail's site. The amazing fact for Bournemouth fans is that we would suddenly see the side in mid-table, in 14th, on 32 points, six points above the relegation zone and with a much better chance of survival. But crazily the bottom three would consist of Wolves, who would see 17 points knocked off of their total.
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While it is hard to come up with any fair solution, I find it hard to readjust the current standings based on matches that have already been played, having changed score lines. While there will be winners and losers whatever solution the authorities come up with, the hard fact that games have been played already, surely can't be altered or adjusted. 

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I wonder if it is just easier for the top six to play out a competition to see which three are relegated and the top six play off to see the top six places - that wouldn't please Sheffield Utd or Liverpool I suppose, but it would be vastly kinder to Wolves. The Championship sides and league One and Two could also have their usual play-offs based on the current table positions, but also do it with their bottom six sides for relegation.

Advertisement Eddie Had a Dream eBook version -£7.99!While the suggestions will keep coming, it just underlines to me at the moment that it is a conundrum that can't be solved fairly. It is idealistic to play out the rest of the season, that boat is probably starting to set sail. Something else either has to take its place to fit things in the time left, or the authorities need to think more about next season and writing this one off, which I still believe is the best solution.

Previous post on Cherry Chimes - David Brooks would be the highlight of a Premier League resumption

David Brooks would be the highlight of a Premier League resumption

I am biased of course. But Bournemouth fans have been deprived of the services and skills of David Brooks for far too long, and if the league did restart this summer ,and even if Bournemouth were relegated, I would be one of perhaps a fair few fans hat will have at least been pleased to see our Welsh winger hopefully back in action - and of course, even seeing him may only be possible on an online stream.
This is the man we should be pleased to see return.We have not seen David Brooks since the pre-season friendly with Brentford at Griffin Park on 27 July 2019. it is almost a year and I wonder just how many goals David would have scored in that time, if he had been available. He has had a worthy deputy in Harry Wilson, but there is something majestic about David Brooks playing and AFCB fans need to see him develop.

Advertisement Eddie Had a Dream eBook version -£7.99!The goals are a valuable part of his game, but it is the link up play that I think AFCB have missed the most. He can ride tackles and get a final pass away, and with players with skills like for AFCB are a rare breed. Fraser has seen that part of his game dry up and Stanislas and Danjuma have not made  many more appearances than Brooks. It is David that Eddie Howe hopefully needs back to make a difference to the team.

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While I am not overly confident that AFCB will avoid relegation, wth David Brooks on top form they do have a better chance of survival. If Brooks can just show that he is the intelligent player that we have seen in his first season at AFCB, Bournemouth will see that they have more attacking verve in the last third. I don't want to put pressure on Brooks and I think Eddie Howe will also play down his return to some extent, but the manager will know more than most that, a top-firing David Brooks will light up the Premier League, and that will improve Bournemouth's hopes of staying there.

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While some fans still seem more in wonder about where Ryan Fraser is going this summer. They need to look forward now, and if Fraser is not the future, the club has to make sure that David Brooks is.

Previous posts on Cherry Chimes - Plea for no relegation is growing

Plea for no relegation is growing

The Premier League is no nearer in getting a consensus of opinion that it was probably a month ago about 'Project Restart'. While some clubs are keen to get the season completed, it now emerges that there are calls for no relegation, according to a BBC Report, and a bigger Premier League in 2021 with three teams still being promoted, while Liverpool would still have every chance of picking up their first Premier League title.

It's going to take a long time to get back to this.Frankly, if there is no relegation I don't see why the Premier League needs to play to a finish this season. The places for financial payments could be taken from the positions now. It would then be up to the Premier League if they would be willing to expand the league by accepting promoted sides, although this would affect the numbers of teams in the Championship and leagues One and Two - would they also promote and relegate sides from all the English football leagues?

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Whatever happens in one league has to be carried out in the other leagues as well, to keep everyone on the same page. While the talk of playing out the season in neutral venues has raised the question of integrity and how it is not the same as the first 28 or 29 Premier League fixtures if it is played out this way, the league has to come to a consensus of agreement pretty quickly now.

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I see a resumption this summer as idealistic but overall probably unlikely. All clubs in the Premier League are not going to have the same opinions on a resumption, and if the authorities thought it would be simple to get agreement, they are not looking at what is at stake for many of these clubs. Removing relegation may be financially a massive help to some clubs, but without a need to finish higher than any other club, there is no competition.
Advertisement Eddie Had a Dream -now just 9.99!At least we will know in June whether the whole idea of 'Project Restart' is something that everyone has got behind, or if the the clubs can just start preparing for a hopeful 2021-22 season, which has to be the best way forward, in my opinion, to give clubs a more achievable goal. Clubs need time to plan for their futures without being left on tender hooks as they are being asked to do at present.

Previous post on Cherry Chimes - Aké admits you need self-motivation in self-isolation

Aké admits you need self-motivation in self-isolation

It looks like Nathan Aké is missing his team-mates in self-isolation. Perhaps we take for granted how close some of the players are when they see each other usually in the changing room fairly frequently, as well as training, and just hanging out with each other. While being given personal fitness programmes from the club, it's the comradery that gives teams that buzz of adrenaline and excitement, and without that it is not wonder the players might feel a bit flat.
Ake's finders may be getting more of a workout than his feet.We see from the AFCBTV that Aké has taken up piano playing. I can share a lot of his excitement and eagerness to get on the black and white keys, as I have started to learn myself during the lockdown. While footballers might be good with their feet, dexterity in the fingers takes just as much practise.

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If AFCB don't get a pianist out of the lockdown, perhaps they will have a player who has improved his mental aptitude, because playing the piano really taxes the mind - there is a lot to learn. I should think Nathan is pretty good at picking up things quickly like a sponge, as Eddie Howe will expect him to do that in training, and I can imagine he doesn't take to kindly to players that don't pay full attention when he is setting out a training drill.

Advertisement Eddie Had a Dream eBook version -£7.99!The training field may be empty at the moment, but it is good that AFCB are able to give us all a bit of insight into how some of the players are coping during this period. Being productive is going to be a big help when it comes to going back to football. We need the players to feel fresh, and to have constantly been challenging themselves, which should keep them well prepared for the challenges that will be coming on the football pitch.

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Previous post on Cherry Chimes - St George's Park: the best neutral venue to complete the league?

St George's Park: the best neutral venue to complete the league?

I admire the thought now going into 'project restart' for the Premier League. Alan Brazil on TalkSport cam up with an idea that actually sounds pretty good of using the national St George's Park, where there are 13 outdoor pitches and a hotel. 
Dean Court is probably unlikely to be needed as a neutral
venue considering how far away it is from other clubs.I think wherever games are played it will be difficult but a complex like St George's Park does allow for a certain amount of containment for players and staff - almost like a mini village where players are put almost into a World Cup kind of setting. What makes it hard for me is the number of games that need to be played, and would the league expect teams to come and go when their fixtures are on, then go back, or could they all be based nearby. The problem of travel is going to crop up if there are several neutral venues, but if the Premier League could quarantine a big venue, and surrounding area, it would kind of be a fairly closed shop to people coming and going.

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Others have suggested that the games should be played abroad like Gary Neville at SkySports, but I am not sure players will want to get on planes to fly off somewhere to finish all these matches in a more unfamiliar country. Of course the venue selection is just one of the many obstacles that the Premier League has to come up with, if it is going to get games on again.
Advertisement Eddie Had a Dream -now just 9.99!I find the suggestion that players would have to wear masks quite hard to get my head around, as any contact will probably see the masks come off pretty quickly, but if they are made of strong material and really tightened on the face, surely they will become uncomfortable to wear for 90 minutes. Yesterday, the Premier League did mention that all the clubs do still want the league to play to a finish, which is perhaps good news for AFCB as if the league does what they have done in France, AFCB would be relegated by one goal as the French have abandoned the season, and decided to promote and relegate teams on their unfinished season.
AdvertisementThings may become a bit clearer on 7 May when there is another meeting but the decision can't be pushed down the road forever. UEFA want things clarified before the end of May.

In other news, AFCB will Cherry Pick the Charlton v AFCB promotion game of 2014-15 today on the YouTube Channel at 3pm

Previous post on Cherry Chimes - Which AFCB is best placed to nick an England place in 2021?

Which AFCB player is best placed to nick an England place in 2021?

The time when AFCB didn't have a player knocking on the door of the England national team seems a long time ago now. We are used to seeing Callum Wilson in particular wear the national shirt, but before him there was Lewis Cook who won his first cap in March 2018, and had been involved in squads at the back end of 2017. But is Aaron Ramsdale the best placed of the Cherries now to be an outside contender for an England call up next summer?
Ramsdale may be the next England player to win a full cap.The honour of playing for ones country has to be one of the biggest and proudest moments of any player's career. You can see that just listening to Lewis Cook's recent interview on AFCBTV. But winning cap after cap hasn't been easy for Bournemouth's players. Callum Wilson now has four caps to his name, but he still has a way to go to catch Jermain Defoe on 57, even if most, if not all, of Jermain's call ups were not as a Bournemouth player.



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While Lewis Cook and Callum Wilson, more recently, have slipped out of the picture for an England place, Bournemouth might have a new challenger in the shaper of Aaron Ramsdale. As an England U21 keeper he has to already been in Gareth Southgate's thoughts and with almost a season of Premier League games behind him, Ramsdale is now moving closer to being a contender.
Advertisement Eddie Had a Dream eBook version -£7.99!While Jordan Pickford and Nick Pope are probably the lead contenders for the keeper's shirt, Ramsdale needs to try and rival Sheffield United's Dean Henderson if he is to sneak into Southgate's thoughts. The problem is AFCB have conceded 47 goals at a rate of 1.6 goals a game. That may be good for a Bournemouth keeper compared to previous seasons, despite AFCB's low league position. However, it doesn't rate so well against Henderson on 27 games and 27 goals against, ie one a game.

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This probably indicates that all of Bournemouth's most likely players to interest Southgate have a massive jump in performance to make, if they are to be considered for the Euros in 2021.

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Who will be AFCB's goal saviour?

The task of saving Bournemouth from relegation will fall heavily on all the players, but the biggest pressure will surely be on the strikers. They are the players that will need to score the goals to win games, and this time there is no second chance. Bournemouth either have the goal scorers or they will fall short.
Callum - this can be is moment.The team will automatically look towards Callum Wilson as the main man. He has perhaps had one of his weaker seasons in the Premier League, but he is capable of getting on a goal run, and AFCB will need him to do just that when the games resume. Callum has been focussed when Bournemouth have been up against the odds in the past, but if he gets the goals to stave off relegation his value will rise significantly. I believe he has the ability to rise to the occasion, and if the team need anyone to be at the very top of their game when they do come back, it is Callum.

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While Callum will want to take responsibility for much of the goal scoring, Bournemouth will also rely heavily on Josh King and Ryan Fraser. The Cherries have not seen as many penalties as they might this season, but King needs to be practicing like mad not at slotting away those 12m shots. At least he can do that with a set of goal posts in isolation. Repetition is capable of making an task easier, and King like Fraser will want to get familiar with hitting the back of the net. It is worrying that Fraser has only felt that scoring thrill once this season, but he could leave AFCB having known he was part of the reason why they staved off relegation this season. It's going to be hard for Fraser just to snap into form, but he has this time to focus on the task and regain his belief.

Advertisement Eddie Had a Dream eBook version -£7.99!While we could see goals from Harry Wilson as well helping the team, it may be down to David Brooks to really be the secret weapon in the remaining games. While Brooks has hit great heights in the Premier League, he is still probably one of the players in our team that has had the least games against other Premier League opposition, 30 in all. Some teams won't have worked him out totally yet, and that could give him the advantage over others to get those all important goals.

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Previous post on Cherry Chimes - Will AFCB feel pressured to train soon with other teams already starting?

Chimes Newsletter - out tomorrow!
Cherry Chimes' May Newsletter brings you the best stories on the blog and the thoughts behind them from last month. The newsletter has a special story - Reality is starting to hit home.


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Will AFCB feel pressured to train soon with other teams already starting?

This week we have seen the likes of Arsenal, West Ham, Brighton and Spurs all deciding that their players need to start returning to the training grounds. But others like Watford's Chairman have said it is too soon, and the players that are able to train at their club's training ground are only able to do personal training on their own. Where does this leave AFCB?
Do AFCB have to start asking their players to come in to train at Kings Park?TalkSport did a survey on club's positions and with Kings Park closed off to recreation it doesn't look like AFCB are easily going to get a go ahead to get back to their training ground. But will other teams gain an advantage by getting back in the groove earlier? They may do and it may make little difference, but once one looks like they are benefitting, other clubs will want to follow like sheep. I suspect Bournemouth will ask to start up training again, if more than half of the Premier League clubs are doing this.

Advertisement Eddie Had a Dream -now just 9.99!At the end of the day, nobody wants to get left behind, and the league is so competitive that the owners have to be seen to be giving their teams the best chance of having a good finish if the league resumes. Bournemouth might look most closely at the other bottom five clubs. With Brighton and West Ham already looking to start up their training, it may be thought that the Cherries wont want too many others around their league place starting up before them. Yet, the club may be more concerned with the teams they still have to play and how quickly they return, one of which is Spurs.

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Whatever AFCB decide it has to be what is the best decision for them and their players. The club has to see how much training the players are doing in self-isolation and whether they could do more if thy are in a big field, not far from their team-mates. Is it psychologically good to be around fellow players? Probably yes, but once players go back, they have to make sure they can do something worthwhile on the training ground or the players will soon tire of having to go in if they can't train fully as a team.

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In other news, France has postponed its football and major sporting events until September, effectively ending any chance for Ligue 1 resuming this season. The Bundesliga (Germany) is looking to start behind closed-doors in June and La Liga (Spain) is set to restart training on 4 May. Meanwhile, Fifa's Chief Medical doctor, Michel d'Hooghe, has also warned that football should not try to restart too early.
Previous post on Cherry Chimes - Is Jack Stacey ready to dominate AFCB's right-back position?