Wednesday 15 August 2018

Does it matter that Lewis Cook didn't start against Cardiff?

There were a few puzzled faces when Lewis Cook was left out of the starting line up against Cardiff City. I had wondered if Howe would play three central midfielders as they had all been doing well in pre-season, but he decided to stick with the Marseilles set up which is hard to argue with.
Lewis Cook is put in the sidelines for the first game.
Lewis Cook won't be pleased that he didn't get to start the match as you want to be playing the opening game in what could be your best ever season. Lewis is sensible enough to know that his chance will come and it could make him even more keen to succeed of course when he does get a moment to show what he can do. AFCB fans have to be patient and let Howe manage the team as best he can and we can't be negative about who he picks when the team does its job as a whole well. There is a bigger picture of how the team functions as a whole and individuals are just one factor in many that the manager will have to consider.

Keeping the mood high will be important for Howe and he'll be aware that he also needs to integrate Jefferson Lerma as quickly as he can to AFCB's style of play. Whether he finds Lerma plays with more of an understanding with Lewis Cook, Andrew Surman or Dan Gosling is another factor that he'll need to work out and when the pairings work themselves out we could see a change in the centre of the park.

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I don't worry that Surman has the place at the moment. Many Bournemouth fans only see the negative side of Surman's play, but they forget that he is part of a system and balance to the team that enables other parts to function better. If his form becomes a problem he will be dropped, but if AFCB keep winning then he will build his confidence and improve his play. If it also makes Lewis Cook play even harder in training, and it takes his game to another level, then Howe will see that and will at some point reward him.

In short, it's not a big deal that Lewis Cook is not yet featuring. His time will come as it has before now. 

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