AFCB draw a blank - is this how it is going to be?

The game against Villa was not the result AFCB fans wanted but it illustrated that getting goals in the Premier League is no easy task. For a team that scored so many goals last year it was easy to become accustom to them breaking the net at regular intervals during games, but the opposition is indeed tougher now and while the Cherries proved that they can get in on goal, the sharp finishing just wasn't there on Saturday. Still, there is much to consider on finding ways to improve the both the shot count and the accuracy.

Sadly AFCB are still waiting for some more Gooooaaaaaaaaallls!

It was a fairly even match despite both managers saying that their team dominated large periods of the game. In the shot count AFCB did have the upper hand in 11 to seven, but with a total of two shots on target compared to Villa's three, the difficulty is that the Cherries gave Villa opportunities as well to snatch the game which they promptly did. Getting the balance right is fine lines, but Eddie Howe has to find ways of making the likelihood that more chances fall to the Cherries somehow, and while Pugh, Gosling and Wilson had fine chances that they might have scored from on another day, the game could have been very different if one of the chances for AFCB had been taken.

The missing ingredient could well be in midfield where Harry Arter's ability to find a pass of shoot in an instance is not being fully met by Surman and Gosling at present. Whether Lee Tomlin or Eunan O'Kane who came on for Gosling are introduced in the Liverpool match will probably be something that Eddie Howe considers. With more drive in midfield the gaps will open up more. If the strikers are not quite as good as the very best in the division then AFCB have to try and create more chances for them so that they can at least get more than one chance to score. Villa were very good at cutting down space and channelling the Cherries out wide without allowing them to get around the back. The game was played in front of them if you like for the most part and they'll be games when the Cherries find more space than this.

In the meantime, it will be a matter of keeping the strikers through their drills and getting used to putting balls past our own keepers to feel more confident that they will score. Pre-season began well but did tale off in terms of goals scored and there's work to be done there.