Bournemouth were very much in the game against Arsenal in the first half and even when they went one-nil down they managed to hold the score at just the one goal well into the second half. Possession was fairly even over all as Arsenal became stronger as the game went on. Yet the early dominance that the Cherries had in possession needed them to make Petr Cech more busy if they were to get anything out of the game and in that they came up short.
Petr Cech's clean sheet record may have been a landmark for him, but it was a stat that was made a little easier on the night to achieve with the few shots that the Cherries got on target. For once it did not look like AFCB were going to score and make a comeback. Josh King was preferred as the striker choice and he made plenty of runs with the best being early in the second half when really he should have been in on goal, but could not get the ball under control quickly enough once Surman had played him through. He was probably offside from the TV camera's view, but at least he was making the runs that get defenders turning and offer the chance of a shot.
Against the top sides, the Cherries are having enough possession to live with them but they also have to find gaps in defences and this is something that is still not quite as sharp as the best in the business. With Junior Stanislas coming on in the second half there was more speed and quicker deliveries from out wide but getting in behind Arsenal proved difficult and Charlie Daniels runs usually ended up with the ball being taken off him and he was then helpless and out of position which Arsenal exploited. At that stage of the game though in the second half Eddie Howe was gambling a little to try and get a foothold in the match.
While Eddie is being quiet about options for the January window it is surely a time when AFCB have to consider bringing in another top striker to give Howe more options than he currently has.
All Departments has a double podcast reviewing the Crystal Palace and Arsenal games so listen in by visiting the All Departments' website.
Free Competition - correct score prediction
Okay, my good friends Altamira Deco, Broomhill Garden Buildings and Natterjacks Vets have been sponsoring Cherry Chimes in AFC Bournemouth's first Premier League season and therefore I wanted to give away a few small prizes for those who try and predict the scores for AFC Bournemouth games each week. Let's see if we can get a few more correct ones!
This week we are giving away an official AFC Bournemouth 2016 diary. It is free to enter. You need a Twitter account and need to follow and send a tweet to @PeterBell19 with the correct score for LCFC v AFCB, before Friday 1 January at 8pm.
If there are more than one correct score we will select the winner from the hat from those with the correct score. If there are no correct scores the prize will roll over to the next game.
We will post all predictions as usual on the blog.
If you want to play along as usual but do not want to win the prize just add #NP on your score prediction tweet for no prize.
Petr Cech's clean sheet record may have been a landmark for him, but it was a stat that was made a little easier on the night to achieve with the few shots that the Cherries got on target. For once it did not look like AFCB were going to score and make a comeback. Josh King was preferred as the striker choice and he made plenty of runs with the best being early in the second half when really he should have been in on goal, but could not get the ball under control quickly enough once Surman had played him through. He was probably offside from the TV camera's view, but at least he was making the runs that get defenders turning and offer the chance of a shot.
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| Josh King may need more help up front. |
While Eddie is being quiet about options for the January window it is surely a time when AFCB have to consider bringing in another top striker to give Howe more options than he currently has.
All Departments has a double podcast reviewing the Crystal Palace and Arsenal games so listen in by visiting the All Departments' website.
Free Competition - correct score prediction
 |
| An AFC Bournemouth diary for 2016 is up for grabs. |
This week we are giving away an official AFC Bournemouth 2016 diary. It is free to enter. You need a Twitter account and need to follow and send a tweet to @PeterBell19 with the correct score for LCFC v AFCB, before Friday 1 January at 8pm.
If there are more than one correct score we will select the winner from the hat from those with the correct score. If there are no correct scores the prize will roll over to the next game.
We will post all predictions as usual on the blog.
If you want to play along as usual but do not want to win the prize just add #NP on your score prediction tweet for no prize.
The Cherry Chimes Newsletter will be out tomorrow.
Cherry Chimes' January Newsletter brings you the best stories on the blog and the thoughts behind them from last month, plus there is a special Newsletter article entitled: Can't wait for the 2nd half of the season?
To sign up for the newsletter just complete the form below - like all good things it's free:
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