Premier League winners and losers: United keep up the pressure
By Ty Finch
Loser: Bournemouth
Bournemouth have endured their worst start to the Premier League through 10 games. This being their third season in England’s top flight, it shouldn’t be a surprising stat. But ever since Eddie Howe’s squad were promoted in 2015, they’ve been a strong, confident side that can take down bigger opponents on their day.
It’s still early in the season, of course, but the Cherries are looking for some answers. The good news is that they’ve already faced four of the top six sides in their first 10 games. Manchester City, Arsenal, Tottenham and Chelsea are all tough to play, especially early in the season. The bad news is they’ve lost all of those contests, and only scored once in total.
In fact, the Cherries have only tallied six goals on the season. Last year, Bournemouth scored 55 times, good for seventh in the league. Their possession and pass-based style of play usually lends itself to high scoring matches. The attack simply isn’t clicking; even against smaller sides they were collecting points off of last season. Striker Jermain Defoe has been a disappointment early on, and Jordon Ibe continues to flounder.
The other silver lining for Bournemouth is their upcoming schedule. The month of November includes four very winnable matches, against Newcastle, Huddersfield, Swansea and Burnley. If Howe can pick up at least two wins out of those four, his club will be right back in shape and out of the relegation zone. But first, they need to start scoring goals.