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Saturday, 3 February 2018

Stoke stand between Bournemouth and a new unbeaten record

Bournemouth have now gone six games in the Premier League unbeaten which equals their previous best run and yet the wins that have come in this particular run have been games where I suppose the Cherries have not been favourites to pick up so many points. There is no doubt that the game against Chelsea is the best that the team has played all season and I get the feeling that we are in the middle of a purple patch that could take Bournemouth unbeaten into March.
Callum Wilson has scored four goals in his last six games.
The next opponents though to try and stop AFCB from setting a new unbeaten record is Stoke City. They are four points behind the Cherries in 16th and their position is just a perilous as any in the bottom half, so we can expect them to be fighting for their lives. Whether that makes them a more dangerous opponent than a top six side I'm not sure. Bournemouth have to come down off the jubilation of what they have just done at Chelsea and do it all again as if perhaps had not even happened. At least they need to show the same work-rate and drive to win the game. Just because they have rolled over Chelsea doesn't mean a win is automatic against Stoke City.

I do think there is a lot of aggression usually associated with a game against Stoke and in their last match against Watford they picked up four yellow cards. It's going to be a very different sort of game from what we saw against Chelsea and AFCB need to be good at holding their nerve and letting their football do the talking on the pitch without getting caught up in an ugly game, which I am sure Stoke will not be too displeased about if they can make it a physical contest. They do play down the middle only winning two corners in their last match and the central spine of Bournemouth will need to be on their mark to win the knock downs. If Bournemouth can pick up the loose balls and turnover play quickly, it will open up play for the likes of Ibe and Stanislas.

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What impressed me about AFCB at Chelsea though was not only that they managed to create chances when in possession, but they also kept a clean sheet. If Stoke City can be restricted in the middle then perhaps AFCB will have enough possession during the game to put some chances away and make it seven unbeaten.

AFCB subs: Boruc, Simpson, Arter, Surman, Pugh, Mousset, King


T-Shirt Competition
If you did not win the Cherry Chimes' T-shirt last game here is another chance. Just guess the minute of the first goal between AFC Bournemouth v Stoke City. If two or more fans get the correct minute we will draw the winner from a hat, otherwise it is nearest to the correct minute that wins.

Tweet your answer to @Cherry Chimes before 9am this morning. Good luck!  

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