Where has AFCB's control gone?

Bournemouth really struggled to stay in the match with Huddersfield Town and they probably had their worst home performance in this game, even though they didn't lose. What should worry Eddie Howe is how supreme the team looked when it headed into a 2-0 lead and yet how ill-equipped it was to defend that lead. Howe refers to some heroic defending and while Asmir Begovic was miraculous, there was lots to question in the performances of AFCB's defenders.

If AFCB do get ahead against Liverpool we need to see
more control than we saw against Huddersfield.

On review it might even have been more prudent to have kept Tyrone Mings in the line up against Huddersfield. Mistakes where happening all over the place and while Steve Cook was battling with his own demons on the pitch by slicing a few clearances out of play, he rightly took exception the the home crowd's displeasure at his attempts to find team-mates. No one plans to misplace a pass or shank a clearance, but it was all rather frequent and only served to give Huddersfield more confidence.

The sure-footed Nathan Ake even got caught out at times and Jefferson Lerma gives us all a fright when he loses the ball on the edge of his own area. Having established a lead it is control that AFCB need to work on. They have the attacking players to hurt teams but in general play they could have done with a more metronomic passer on Tuesday night. That implies to me that if Dan Gosling still isn't fit, then Andrew Surman may have to help out in midfield against a Liverpool side who won't waste as many opportunities at Huddersfield did. Bournemouth are really short in central midfield now with Lewis Cook ruled out for the rest of the season and Eddie Howe is going to have to make changes.

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The out balls seemed to disappear in the second half against Huddersfield and the ball just kept coming back. If Eddie Howe does any work with the players this week, it should be just about the defensive shape and keeping the ball as well as working without the ball. It is okay when AFCB find the creative players to start attacks, but when they don't find that space they get confused, and play their way into trouble too often at the back or in midfield. Huddersfield hardly had to sneeze and AFCB's players were gifting them the ball in dangerous areas. I hope to see more control and protection of the ball against Liverpool.

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