'I think they managed better'published at 20:23 10 May
20:23 10 May
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Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola speaking to BBC Match of the Day after their 1-0 defeat to Aston Villa: "I think the game has gone more similar to the one they wanted to play. I think in the first half it was a lot of stop and go and not a lot of rhythm. It hasn't been enough for us. Overall I think they managed better. We haven't been able to punish them.
"We need to manage the small things better. It is a very experienced team and probably they have competed better than us. For us the situation changes. Now we are behind some teams and we have to wait on some results and make sure we recover and finish the season well.
"We want to be in this fight and we have to continue. We don't know where we are going to finish but we have to keep going."
On Adam Smith reaching 400 games: "We are talking about big numbers. You have to be here in the good moments, bad moments. Adam trains very well and the players who get these numbers, it is not just a coincidence."
Did you know?published at 19:40 10 May
19:40 10 May
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Bournemouth have lost five of their last seven Premier League home games (W1 D1), with their previous five defeats at the Vitality Stadium coming over a 25-game spell (W13 D7).
Bournemouth 0-1 Aston Villa - send us your thoughtspublished at 19:32 10 May
Sutton's predictions: Bournemouth v Aston Villapublished at 14:09 10 May
14:09 10 May
This should be a cracking game. Aston Villa really need a win to boost their hopes of making the top five, but how can I back against a Bournemouth side that beat Arsenal last time out?
Part of my predictions strategy last week was to back the teams who are going for the Champions League places, but I don't think you can just ignore how well a team like Bournemouth are playing.
Iraola on Ouattara's injury, captain Smith and the importance of datapublished at 15:04 9 May
15:04 9 May
Josh Lobley BBC Sport Journalist
Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola has been speaking to the media before Saturday's Premier League game against Aston Villa (kick-off 17:30 BST).
Here are the key lines from his news conference:
Iraola says that Dango Ouattara is unlikely to feature again this season because of an adductor injury. Ryan Christie, Enes Unal and Luis Sinisterra are still not ready to return to action.
Regardless of what happens in the final three games, he classes this as a special season for the club: "We have been really good this season. Offensively and defensively, we are up there with teams who are better than us - it is something to be proud of. Now we have to give the last push to get something tangible. To get big rewards you have to do big things."
On Saturday's opponents: "If we want to make them suffer, we have to play like the big teams do at home [against them] and this is not easy. They have been a little bit better than us [in previous matches against them] but we have been quite competitive. We need to change some things to close the gap."
He spoke highly of club captain Adam Smith, whose next game will be his 400th for the Cherries: "You have to be consistently performing very well [to reach 400 matches] and fighting against your team-mates for your position. He wants to train well every day and is someone who is very reliable. He understands his strengths and weaknesses. I think he can still add more games to that amount."
On the importance of data in his success on the south coast: "Data is very valuable for me - now we maybe have too much! I like to analyse, we have data from past games and seasons, there are patterns and you see there are reasons behind things. You can't only focus on data but for the scouting department and us analysing our performance, it is a big help."
'End of an era' as 'Willo' set for retirementpublished at 16:46 7 May
16:46 7 May
Mark Mitchener BBC Sport senior journalist
While Bournemouth recently broke new ground (literally) with the opening of their new training centre, and hope to break more (metaphorically) if they can meet owner Bill Foley's ambition of qualifying for Europe, it will soon be the end of another era.
BBC Radio Solent's long-serving Cherries summariser John Williams, 64, announced at the final whistle of Saturday's historic win at Arsenal that he would be retiring at the end of the season after an association with Bournemouth stretching back for nearly four decades.
Universally known as "Willo" to team-mates, fans and colleagues alike, John's accent immediately reveals his Merseyside origins. Born in Liverpool, he grew up as a staunch Everton fan and began his playing career at Tranmere in 1979. A square-jawed, old-school central defender, he moved to Port Vale in 1985 but the following year he caught the eye of a certain Harry Redknapp.
Although Redknapp must have signed thousands of players across his long managerial career, he has repeatedly cited Williams as his best g (yes, even above luring Paolo di Canio to West Ham). Moving to Dean Court in December 1986, he played a key role as Redknapp's Cherries won the old Third Division title to reach the second tier for the first time in their history.
Long before assists were a common footballing metric, Willo would have racked up an impressively high number for a centre-back, with his physique (receding hairline included) perfectly suited to flicking corners on at the near post for a team-mate to score. There was even the odd goal too, such as an overhead kick at Leicester on Boxing Day 1989 reminiscent of Pele in the film Escape to Victory.
But his playing days were ultimately cut short by injury. Ruled out of the final run-in of the 1989-90 season, Willo had a glimpse of his future radio career as a guest summariser for Radio Solent's commentary as the Cherries were relegated following defeat by Leeds.
He remained on Bournemouth's books for a further season, being loaned to Norwegian side Stromsgodset and Wigan before leaving for a brief spell with Cardiff. However, he was soon back at Dean Court, brought back by Redknapp's successor Tony Pulis as community officer and soon promoted to youth team coach.
When Pulis was sacked just before the start of the 1994-95 season, Willo found himself elevated to caretaker manager for the first half-dozen games, but stayed on as assistant manager to Mel Machin for nearly six seasons.
Since the early 2000s, he has remained as Radio Solent's regular summariser, forming a popular on-air partnership with commentator Kris Temple for many years, travelling up and down the country as the Cherries rose through the divisions to the Premier League.
Willo was recently asked the big question - who does he want to win when Bournemouth play Everton?
"Well, it's like Everton's my girlfriend, but Bournemouth's my wife," he said with a chuckle.
Could Bournemouth hold the 'all important deciding factor'?published at 12:28 6 May
12:28 6 May
Tom Jordan Fan writer
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We're now into the final month of the league season and Bournemouth fans are STILL dreaming of Europe. It feels a tall order, but whichever way you look at it, the Cherries have had a phenomenal season.
It looks as if Bournemouth are competing with Fulham,Brighton and Brentford for that final European spot, albeit this may change depending on whether Crystal Palace can surprise Manchester City in the FA Cup final.
There are plenty of differences in this campaign in the way Bournemouth have gone about things, but what could be key is their healthy goal difference. Before this season, the club's best ever goal difference in a Premier League season was minus 12. Currently, they sit on plus 13 with three to play!
It's a sizable turnaround for the Cherries, so what's changed?
Bournemouth will rarely be described as a "defensive unit" under Andoni Iraola, but the improvement in defensive numbers has been evident throughout. However, it is because the side have been offensively aggressive and playing on the front foot, perhaps proving that such an approach can still provide healthy defensive metrics.
Suffocating their opponents has prevented many sides from being able to significantly hurt Bournemouth, and in turn, the Cherries have been able to cause a substantial amount of damage to the opposition themselves.
There is no doubt plenty of individuals have lifted Bournemouth, with both Dean Huijsen and Kepa Arrizabalaga being key at one end, with the arrival of Evanilson at the top end nicely filling the hole that Dominic Solanke left.
As for their current competitors' goal differences, Brentford sit on plus nine, Brighton on plus one and Fulham on plus three. With the run in looking like it will go to the wire, so Bournemouth's remarkable elevation in this particular statistic could end up being the all important deciding factor.
Kluivert hails Bournemouth's visionpublished at 13:37 5 May
13:37 5 May
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Bournemouth attacker Justin Kluivert has praised the club for delivering on the vision they used to attract his signature.
The former Ajax player was signed by Bournemouth in 2023 and has been instrumental this season, chipping in with 12 goals and six assists in the Premier League.
"They came to me and they knew what they wanted -, they didn't sell me lies," Kluivert told a special episode of BBC Radio 5 Live's Football Daily podcast.
"They sold me this [Bournemouth's new training facility], and they gave it to me. They sold me many more other things and they backed it up. I did my part, they did their part, and I think it's a very good match."
The Dutchman also stated that his goal was to ply his trade in the Premier League even when coming through the ranks with European giants Ajax.
"If you are in the youth of Ajax, you are thinking about playing in the Premier League," he said. "The Premier League for footballers is the best there is. That will stay for always, and I am thankful to be here."
'The team and staff made the recovery easy' - Araujopublished at 12:27 5 May
12:27 5 May
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Following Saturday's victory against Arsenal, Julian Araujo spoke to BBC Radio Solent after making his first start since returning from injury: "It was a long five months without any games. To come back and get three points at a stadium where we have had no points at is a great feeling.
"I just keep my feet on the ground and work hard. It was a very tough recovery but this group and the staff have made it easy for me. Being in a whole new country alone is hard but I'm very happy to be a part of this club.
"The team and club is going in the right direction. We have a lot of belief in ourselves and the manager and staff have the belief in us too."
Arsenal 1-2 Bournemouth - the fans' verdictpublished at 09:59 5 May
Rachel: Same old, same old. Seriously worrying Arsenal performance. Another pathetic display from Martin Odegaard who didn't bother to turn up. It doesn't fill me with optimism for remaining games and looks like we're going to fade away yet again.
Dan: Simply pathetic, again. If Arteta had rested the first team, I wouldn't be as mad, but well done Mikel, you've tired your starters, with the most important game of the season just days away. Given we're almost guaranteed to fail to beat PSG, I think we have to focus on qualifying for the Champions League. We'll struggle to finish top five in this form.
Terrence: Pitiful, clueless, effortless and so on. We played like a tired bunch that have never seen a football match. As I said weeks ago, Arsenal will be lucky to finish in the top four. They deserve the criticism, sad end to the season.
Bournemouth fans
Bernard: Firstly well done Cherries! We've done the double on Arsenal. We started well and seemed to come to a stop after their goal but kept them at bay until half-time. Great substitutions by the gaffer in the second half. Once we equalised, Arsenal appeared clueless. The second goal was deserved, however contentious it appeared. VAR went our way for a change!
Matt: I had a feeling on the way up we could get something at Emirates Stadium, especially if Arsenal rested a few players. Very surprised to see them put out a full-strength side, but that just adds to our satisfaction in finally winning at N5. Superb set-pieces and bringing on fresh legs were key. The European dream is reignited.
Bob: A fortunate win - have to learn how to hold on to winning positions. I keep saying we need a hard defender.
Evanilson 'a fantastic g for Bournemouth'published at 09:26 5 May
09:26 5 May
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Former Premier League midfielder Nigel Reo-Coker was full of praise for Evanilson after the Bournemouth striker scored the winner against Arsenal on Saturday.
He told BBC Radio 5 Live's Football Daily podcast the Brazilian has been a fantastic g.
"I've been a fan of Evanilson since he was at Porto so I saw the quality striker that he was," he said. "When I saw he was coming to Bournemouth, I thought that was a fantastic g.
"He is a top class striker. He knows where the back of the net is and is going to get goals. Great movement in the box, a great natural finisher and old-school striker. He's just gone from strength to strength since coming to Bournemouth.
"He really is a great player and he has got the luxury of playing with Justin Kluivert and Marcus Tavernier. He has been sensational and it's great recruiting on their part."
Gossip: Real Madrid monitor Bournemouth duopublished at 07:28 5 May
07:28 5 May
Real Madrid sent scouts to watch Bournemouth's 20-year-old centre-back Dean Huijsen and 21-year-old left-back Milos Kerkez during Saturday's win at Arsenal. (TBR Football), external
Catch up on the Premier League actionpublished at 12:34 4 May
12:34 4 May
Highlights and analysis from Saturday's Four Premier League fixtures, plus the best of the action from Friday's game between Manchester City and Wolves.
Arsenal 1-2 Bournemouth - set-pieces keypublished at 20:24 3 May
20:24 3 May
Gary Rose BBC Sport journalist
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Bournemouth secured a first-ever win at Arsenal to also complete the double over the Gunners and keep alive their hopes of playing European football next season.
It had, however, looked like the result would be defined by their missed chances as they missed a couple of big opportunities in the first half.
But ultimately Andoni Iraola's use of substitutions and clever play from set-pieces proved key.
Their equaliser came from a long throw by Antoine Semenyo. who found Dean Huijsen inside the box and the defender headed home.
The winner came from a corner, flicked on to the back post where Evanilson bundled in.
It marked the first time Arsenal had conceded two goals from set-piece situations in the same Premier League game since December 2023.
Set pieces made the difference in a close game - Iraolapublished at 20:15 3 May
20:15 3 May
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Andoni Iraola spoke to Sky Sports after Bournemouth's victory against Arsenal: "I liked the game overall. I think we had chances. They scored but we played well. The key was the set plays in the second half. In the end in these close games to make the difference with the set plays was the key to take the three points.
On staying patient: "I think we have been at half time talking about a good first half. They [Arsenal] are going to have chances but we were playing well, having a lot of the ball, taking good positions. It was a matter of doing the same thing, pushing a bit more, and I think the subs also helped us. Antoine [Semenyo] coming from the bench was a good spark at that moment when both teams were tired.
On Semenyo's long throws: "Yes we hardly score any, that's the first one. We conceded two or three this season. We have a couple of players who can put in dangerous throws. Today [the throw] was longer than I expected, but it's a nice moment to score this type of goal."
On goalscorer Dean Huijsen: "I think he is playing very well. Even in this scenario being on the ball he was confident. It's dfficult to defend everything. I think it's the third goal he's scored on set plays, he's our biggest threat there and he's helping us a lot."
On getting three points: "I think we needed this one because we know the schedule we have. Arsenal, Villa, City, you have to get points where you don't expect. We missed a few chances recently and we needed it this time to go to our side."
Did you know?published at 19:45 3 May
19:45 3 May
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Bournemouth have completed the league double over Arsenal, with today the first time they've ever avoided defeat away against the Gunners in all competitions (L8).
Arsenal 1-2 Bournemouth - send us your thoughtspublished at 19:30 3 May
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