Over the past 30 days, a ripple of awareness has steadily spread through the Premier League: Whatever it is, AFC Bournemouth have found it.
It’s a development that flew well under the radar for weeks, mostly due to other storylines: Aston Villa are legitimate contenders for the top four; Manchester City are showing vulnerabilities; oh, and did you see Harry Maguire won Player of the Month?!?
All the while, Bournemouth were quietly clicking into gear and racking up points. In November they beat Newcastle United and Sheffield United by clear margins, then in early December they defeated Crystal Palace and came within a minute of doing the same to Villa. Yet still they were flying under the radar… until their historic trip to Old Trafford at the weekend.
Saturday’s 3-0 defeat of Manchester United moved the needle. While some were still keen to paint it as the next chapter in the Red Devils’ curiously grim campaign, that Cherries performance gained the recognition it deserved, the wider world waking up to what is now one of the best runs of form not just in the Premier League, but across Europe too.
Across the last six league games, Bournemouth (6.96) have the second-best WhoScored form rating in the Premier League, and the fourth best in Europe's top five leagues. Only Fulham, who have scored 16 goals in four games, rank above them domestically; while only Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich outshine them from across the continent. They’re in remarkable company.
It’s taken some time for things to come together under manager Andoni Iraola - more time, perhaps, than many Premier League club owners would have allowed. But Bournemouth’s decision to move on from the popular Gary O’Neil in the summer was bold and highly scrutinised, so giving up on Iraola early was likely never an option.
Those first nine games were tough, though; they leaked goals and chances, then fluffed their attacking lines. When O’Neil, now in charge of Wolves, exploited Bournemouth’s pressing game en route to a 2-1 victory, then went on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football and showed everyone how he did it, Iraola might well have felt ready to be swallowed up by the ground.
But the Bournemouth of December are a far cry from that iteration. It’s amazing how different things look when a manager’s ideas fully take hold - and in this case, when an aggressive pressing system finds its groove and a little bit of finishing star dust is found.
Dominic Solanke is a nice individual symbol for the Cherries’ newfound effectiveness, scoring five goals in his last eight Premier League games and leading a ferocious press from the front. Behind him sit Ryan Christie and Lewis Cook, a wolfish midfield pairing that tear across the pitch and snap into challenges. Against Villa alone, Christie won six tackles and made two interceptions, setting a ridiculous standard that even the bustling John McGinn fell short of.
Milos Kerkez, recently restored to the starting XI, is booming up and down the flank from the left, while Illia Zabarnyi is enjoying a golden period in the side, dominating ground duels in a defensive line that plays high up and dabbles in risk.
Put simply: They’re a nightmare to play against. Not in a nasty way, more an exhausting one. 90 minutes against Iraola’s Bournemouth is like running the Steeplechase: It’s a brutal exercise of non-stop duels and varying obstacles that push you to your absolute limit.
All the while, as his team scurries about the pitch at great intensity, Iraola watches on placidly from the dugout, arms often folded, brain always calculating. His distinct tactical style - borne from playing under Marcelo Bielsa at Athletic Club, honed at Rayo Vallecano in LaLiga - is revealing itself on the south coast, transforming Bournemouth into contenders every time they set foot on the pitch.
