Who can Eddie rely on to perform?
The Watford match was a big disappointment. Eddie Howe thought he had picked a well-balanced side, but for me there were a few problems with the team selection from the start and what was shouting loudest for me was how many players are playing in their respected positions?
Every one talks a good game but who are the players
that can actually raise their game in a dog fight?What I couldn't work out was even with the players Eddie picked, Nathan Aké was playing at left-back which isn't his strongest position. Okay, we had Adam Smith in the right back role which was fine. But Simon Francis was the preferred centre-back with Steve Cook, rather than Aké. Howe could have played Francis at right back or better still left him on the bench. He had a perfectly good left-back in Diego Rico, who could have started, freeing up Aké to play in his best position.
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I still don't believe that Eddie Howe is sure of his best two central midfielders. He played most of the season with Lerma and Billing filling the roles. Then Billing gets a couple of goals in the FA Cup and is rewarded with a spot on the bench. What does that do to Billings' confidence? Gosling had needed a rest perhaps for the FA Cup game and Howe felt he could bring him back in. Then I have to ask was Lerma doing so badly that he needed to be subbed and also Gosling on the hour? Could Eddie not decide between Gosling and Lerma who should stay on so he subbed them both? Looking at the bench though Howe only had Surridge and central midfielders to be offensive with.
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Eddie Had a Dream is on sale now!The last sub was also intriguing. Harry Wilson is usually the player that is pulled just like Ibe used to be. But did having Solanke, Callum Wilson and Sam Surridge playing at the game time do Bournemouth any favours? The game was pretty much up then at 0-2 down, but Harry Wilson is more used to playing out wide than any of Solanke, Callum or Surridge. It was shoe-horning players out of their natural positions, not replacing like with like.
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I know injuries are the main problem but Bournemouth will keep losing games if they can't get more of their players playing in their respected positions. Then perhaps Eddie can expect some of the players to perform better. Who he can rely on at the moment to do a job in an unusual position for them though is probably none. Somethings might look good in training for 10 or 15 minutes, but the solutions have to work over 90 minutes and they just aren't lasting at the moment.

that can actually raise their game in a dog fight?What I couldn't work out was even with the players Eddie picked, Nathan Aké was playing at left-back which isn't his strongest position. Okay, we had Adam Smith in the right back role which was fine. But Simon Francis was the preferred centre-back with Steve Cook, rather than Aké. Howe could have played Francis at right back or better still left him on the bench. He had a perfectly good left-back in Diego Rico, who could have started, freeing up Aké to play in his best position.
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I still don't believe that Eddie Howe is sure of his best two central midfielders. He played most of the season with Lerma and Billing filling the roles. Then Billing gets a couple of goals in the FA Cup and is rewarded with a spot on the bench. What does that do to Billings' confidence? Gosling had needed a rest perhaps for the FA Cup game and Howe felt he could bring him back in. Then I have to ask was Lerma doing so badly that he needed to be subbed and also Gosling on the hour? Could Eddie not decide between Gosling and Lerma who should stay on so he subbed them both? Looking at the bench though Howe only had Surridge and central midfielders to be offensive with.
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I know injuries are the main problem but Bournemouth will keep losing games if they can't get more of their players playing in their respected positions. Then perhaps Eddie can expect some of the players to perform better. Who he can rely on at the moment to do a job in an unusual position for them though is probably none. Somethings might look good in training for 10 or 15 minutes, but the solutions have to work over 90 minutes and they just aren't lasting at the moment.
Published on January 15, 2020 22:46
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Cherry Chimes
This is a fan’s personal view of AFC Bournemouth from the outside looking in. It reports on the daily official activities reported by the club and comments made by individual fans on social media and
This is a fan’s personal view of AFC Bournemouth from the outside looking in. It reports on the daily official activities reported by the club and comments made by individual fans on social media and fanbase websites. Life as an AFCB fan is never dull. As a life-long supporter of the Cherries, it is the friendliness of the staff, fans and my enthusiasm for the club that inspired me to write this blog. https://afcbchimes.blogspot.com/
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