Has Begovic grown an inch?

Asmir Begovic has not found it simple to keep clean sheets, but he is making difficult saves look more routine in a Bournemouth shirt. His double save against Jamie Vardy and James Maddison at the weekend was outstanding and his agility, if not his height, seems to have grown over the summer.

Begovic can stand tall after recent performances.

With the amount of saves Begovic is making though he should be walking around an inch or two taller. His catching has gone up a level or two as well, as he didn't look like dropping anything against Leicester and was most assured on crosses, which gives confidence to the team.

The back line needs that confidence in kicking as well and playing out from the back. This is probably the area of the game where Begovic, as well as many other keepers are finding that the game has moved on very quickly in recent years. Playing from the back is difficult when keepers don't think quickly and Begovic's throw outs are becoming really important for setting up play from Bournemouth's own half.

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The stats show that Begovic kicks more than we might expect with 43 goal kicks so far, just over eight per game. But the stats don't say how many of these are taken shot to his defenders on the edge of the box. His throw outs amount to 25, five per game. 

Having a good goal keeper is going to save teams at least 10 points in an average season. With Begovic conceding seven goals in five games, he is below the rate which saw Bournemouth let in 61 goals last season. If he can keep up his current level the Cherries will end up on 53 goals against, so he has had a good start to the season.

In other news, Stanislas and Pugh score in an 8-1 win in the Hampshire Senior Cup playing for the U21 against Eastleigh. Best wishes to former Cherry Eunan O'Kane who has suffered a double leg break playing on loan for Luton.