Eddie Howe has entered yet another Premier League campaign with Bournemouth with a roar. Chelsea (or anyone) cannot take them lightly.
When Bournemouth and their baby faced manager Eddie Howe first entered the Premier League they were viewed as a novelty. They came from League Two over the course of six seasons mostly under Howe’s guidance (he had one stint away at Burnley briefly). But ever since they have proven to be anything but a novelty.
Howe sets his team up to be fighters. They know they are small and short of funds. But they do not have quit in them. Whether it is away to Manchester City or at home to Huddersfield, they come out to play their way. So far, it has made them a staple of the Premier League and the team most capable of upsets.
Any team playing against Bournemouth must be careful. They have been known to roar back from deficits to win or draw. And Howe has a keen tactical eye which helps to gain advantages unexpected by a manager at a team like Bournemouth. Other than debatably Arsenal, this will be Chelsea’s and Maurizio Sarri’s most difficult match yet.
Howe mostly sets his team up in a 4-4-2 or variant thereof. It is not unusual to see the side set up in 4-2-3-1 or 4-4-1-1 by slightly adjusting which players are on the pitch. A back three is also not out of the question as Howe occasional throws that out thanks to Nathan Ake’s versatility and tendency to roam forward. Having surely watched Newcastle defend (mostly) successfully last week with a back three, Howe might be leaning towards doing the same with a more attacking minded approach.
Because the formation is sometimes variable, Bournemouth rarely defends in the same shape. But the general trends of what they do remain the same. They will become very compact and try to force the opponent wide by shifting their body shapes. Once they win the ball, they look to play it long to their faster wingers in hopes for a quick counter with little opposition.
Bournemouth’s attacks are also quite vertical as well. It is rare to see them pass sideways or backwards for an extended period of time. All of their strikers and wingers are good at finding space around the box and they usually find themselves on the end of through balls. It takes a very organized and composed defense to face the onslaught of through balls without making a mistake.
The biggest threat that Bournemouth will offer is their “never say die” attitude. They could be losing 5-0 and they will still be playing for a win. Other than that, the players are totally committed to Howe and whatever tactic he has in mind for the day. There will be no one going it alone in a Howe squad.
Their weakness is, ironically, exactly what makes their attack so tricky. Because they attack in packs, they often commit a lot of players forward. They then become vulnerable to through balls, especially as some of their defenders advance for a counter press. That will leave them open to mistakes and one on one attacks, provided Chelsea play more vertically than they did against Newcastle.
Bournemouth and their manager are smart and not to be taken lightly. In matches against Cardiff, West Ham, and Everton, they have scored and conceded the same amount of goals as Chelsea. And as Howe has shown against Chelsea before, he knows how to nullify the Blues and make them work for their points. This match could very well be the toughest in the Premier League yet. It will be up to Maurizio Sarri to prove he added the verticality and organization missing from the squad against Newcastle. A repeat of that performance will play right into Howe’s hands.