This is a fan’s personal view of AFC Bournemouth from the outside looking in. It reports on the daily official activities reported by the club and comments made by individual fans on social media and fanbase websites. Life as an AFCB fan is never dull. As a life-long supporter of the Cherries, it is the friendliness of the staff, fans and my enthusiasm for the club that inspired me to write this blog.
Bournemouth have already released Ryan Allsop this summer and now Stoke City are closing in on signing Adam Federici, reports Sky Sports. Stoke themselves are losing Lee Grant to Man United and they are looking for an experienced keeper to give cover for Jack Butland. While Federici was ever present on the bench for the first two seasons of Bournemouth's Premier League seasons, he has been injured for much of last season and was due to join Nottingham Forest, where he picked up the knee injury that stopped him perhaps leaving AFCB even sooner.
Federici looks set for Stoke City in the Championship.
At Stoke City, Federici would team up with former Cherry Benik Afobe and that might also be good for Benik. Stoke are going to make a concerted effort to win promotion at the first attempt back to the Premier League and under Gary Rowett they have a good English manager who knows the league well and what it takes to get into the promotion positions.
I imagine Federici would be available at a knock down price as he hasn't played competitively for a while. He was perhaps always a number two at AFCB at best with Artur Boruc and then Asmir Begovic the main shot stoppers at the Cherries. But Adam did play his part and featured heavily in the cup competitions. Now Eddie Howe will want to see Aason Ramsdale starting to get more experience following his rise to the England U21 squad. He may now get the chance to develop more at AFCB rather than go out on loan, unless AFCB bring in another senior keeper this summer.
While Federici might not become the number one shot stopper at Stoke, he will battle for the number two keeper spot with Jacob Haugaard, I'd have thought, which s better than his prospects at AFCB. Southgate's World Cup - Day 18 Japan get out of jail
Adam Federici has been seen in the last few weeks warming up with the other Bournemouth keepers before Premier League games. He is now fit and ready to play and with goal keeping duties already well served with Asmir Begovic and Artur Boruc installed as the Bournemouth regulars there is little reason for Eddie Howe to keep hold of Federici anymore and Nottingham Forest are still said to be interested, even though they have had a change of manager.
Federici is ready to resume his career.
AitorKaranka, who replaced Mark Waburton, in January is going to be considering his options at Nottingham Forest and if a goal keeper is still his main concern then he will surely look at Federici if he is aware of how close he was to joining Forest at the start of the season. Federici has not played a massive part on the field for the Cherries since he signed from Reading, but he has been a massive part of the team when it came to training and being around other players. If Artur Boruc had not been ahead of him, Federici might have built up more of a bond with AFCB fans, but I expect when he does leave it will not be a huge loss for us.
What I did like about Federici is that he never said much in the press but kept himself to himself and did his job. The fact that injury robbed him of some of his playing time is not anything he could do much about, but he will certainly get lost of games if he does go to a Championship side.
Keepers tend to get better with age they say, so 32-year-old Federici might find his next challenge is one where he plays some of the best football of his career. Given the choice between a Championship team and playing third fiddle to Begovic and Boruc, I'm sure Federici will want to move in this window. In other news, the Spurs home game has been moved to Sunday 11 March at 4pm.
There was a good possibility that the Cherries would allow a couple of players to leave in this summer window and it was of little surprise that Adam Federici joined Nottingham Forest on a permanent deal, and Marc Wilson eventually beat the deadline to play for Sunderland. The first team was otherwise unscathed, despite Wolverhampton Wanderers putting in a £15m bid to try and recapture Benik Afobe. Aaron Ramsdale also attracted interest from Rochdale and Wycombe Wanderers, according to sports journalist Pete O'Rourke. AFCB did allow U21 Matt Worthington to join Yeovil Town on loan and U21 Mihai Dobre got to join Bury until January, but all the major gossip was on whether AFCB tabled a £25m or £27m bid (plus £3m add-ons), depending on which source you wanted to believe, for Leicester City's Demarai Gray.
Adam Federici has left AFCB to join Forest.
I took a passing interest in deadline day, checking in now and again to see if there was much movement, but with Eddie Howe reluctant to say much more than his business has been done early, there was little optimism of a big late deal stunning fans at Dean Court. A potential wow factor might have come from Jack Wilshere resigning, but that was a fairly long shot.
Much better really was the news, earlier this week, that Josh King had signed a new four-year deal. AFCB have not got a big squad and it was crucial to ensure Josh King was made to feel appreciated after his goal tally of last season with Tottenham and Everton reported to be sniffing a potential striker signing. While Josh has not scored this season, his qualities and importance to the squad are highly appreciated by everyone at Dean Court and his signature would have been what sensible AFCB fans would have most wanted when the season ended last May, rather than hearing AFCB would smash its transfer record on a young Leicester winger who had previously turned the Cherries down when he had been at Birmingham City. With Benik Afobe having started in two of AFCB's three Premier League games this season there was a clear indication that Eddie Howe sees the DR Congo striker as having a part to play in this season's campaign, so I felt Wolves' fans were always going to be disappointed if they saw Benik as the striker who would be prepared to drop down a league to rejoin them. It didn't stop Wolves from making a bid though, which hopefully makes Benik feel good about himself if nothing else. Any way we need him to be available to keep the Nathan Aké song going strong!
In essence it was a quiet final day of the transfer window for AFCB, but at least it gave the club a chance to tell everyone that the new third kit would be out this week. They could have used Rhoys Wiggins, as he is still perhaps wandering what his role is at AFCB! PremierTalk – The window shuts but not everyone got their move
Cherry Chimes' September Newsletter brings you the best stories on the blog and the thoughts behind them from last month.
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Adam Federici could be setting his sights on a Championship move.
Local papers in Nottingham have been suggesting that Adam Federici is a target for Nottingham Forest in the Championship. The potential move would perhaps sit well with Adam who has only made eight appearances for AFCB since his arrival in 2015. Last season he did not appear in the Premier League and he has now dropped down the order with Asmir Begovic coming to the club.
While Ryan Allsop has gone on loan to Blackpool, Eddie Howe still has the prospect of bringing Aaron Ramsdale into the first team squad, and if the club is to develop young players there has to be some opportunities for them. Federici has been a number two to Boruc during most of his time at Bournemouth, and while he has seen the team do well it can't have been quite what he was hoping to achieve when he signed from Reading.
Having had a full pre-season and still finding himself behind the likes of Boruc and Begovic it is going to be on Federici's mind that there is a world cup coming up and that he needs to play to keep himself involved in Australia's squad.
While the Championship has been the league in which Federici has played most of his games, he could play an important part in trying to help a team such as Nottingham Forest get back to the Premier League. It would be a challenge that would surely be appealing to Federici compared to his match prospects at Bournemouth. Perhaps we'll see this week if a deal might be done as a permanent move or a loan move. The Daily Mail's The Verdict features Cherry Chimes and will have an AFCB match summary this season after every AFCB Premier League game.
It has been a policy of AFCB to try and bring young keepers up and develop them, but in Eddie Howe's reign there have not been too many to last that long. Ryan Allsop though manages to stay in the squad, despite losing his place as the No 1 keeper back in the Championship side when Lee Camp helped the side out. So with a year still to run on Ryan's contract, and with another young keeper - Aaron Ramsdale, joining Jordan Holmes as another young shot stopper at the club, should Ryan Allsop wonder whether he is making enough progress at AFCB?
Ryan Allsop is expected to be on the subs bench for the visit of Man City.
With both Adam Federici and Artur Boruc being the senior keepers, it is always unlikely that Ryan Allsop would find little playing time for the first team. The odd injury to the leading two keepers though has pushed him onto the bench at times and with just one Premier league cap to his name, against Everton in the 3-3 draw last season, Ryan must be prepared in case he is put into the action against Man City. Adam Federici is now out for the rest of the season, having had an operation this week so Ryan is expected to be back up for Artur Boruc for the remaining games.
However, I wonder if Ryan might be sitting on the bench for Man City visit Dean Court on Monday - thinking I'm probably not going to be involved today. It can't be that stimulating to do all the training sessions and not find any first team games waiting for you at the end of the week. A few weeks of not playing is easy to look over, and when the months go by, you know it is because the other keepers are more experienced and better placed to do the job. Yet, one red card for a keeper and the substitute goal keeper is straight on, and probably has to save a penalty as well. These are not easy shoes to fill.
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'Rocky' must be a popular member of the squad as he is now 24 and was not released when he could have been a year ago. The signing of Aaron Ramsdale will be seen by some as a possible reason for questions to be asked about Ryan's future, as Aaron has a four-and-a-half year deal. Moreover, if Asmir Begovic is really the man that AFCB see as their prospective No 1 come the summer, that will put even more reason to wonder what Ryan's role is now. Ryan is kind of caught between the youth keepers and the senior shot stoppers. How long will AFCB allow him to learn his craft from the elder players, and when will he be expected to start breaking through - or is that not the plan? We don't hear Ryan being interviewed that often and this season he has not been on loan which is perhaps not ideal for him. He must be so wanting to play games to push his career on. Yet, if Artur Boruc does not renew his contract in the summer, it will be surely expected that Ryan challenges Adam Federici more for the No 2 spot - if he is to finish his own contract. Either that or he will be looking for work in the lower leagues, were we know he can perform. I don't see Aaron Ramsdale's arrival as a negative though for Allsop. If anything it should encourage him to have another keeper to work with and compete with. There is kind of a school of young keepers at the club now, and that perhaps helps Ryan to feel more a part of things if he is not getting game sufficient time. But I hope he is getting prepared for Monday night, as he may have a rather bigger job to do than many would expect.
Chelsea may have turned down an offer of around £8 million for their number two keeper Asmir Begovic, but it is likely that this is not the end of the story. The Daily Mail expect Chelsea to hold out for £12m for the Bosnian shot stopper, but giving greater competition to Artur Boruc is only perhaps necessary in this window if Artur's back problems are a real concern.
Will AFCB add a new man between the sticks?
On the pitch Artur has been beaten a few times of late, but I don't think any of the fans are pointing the finger at goalkeeping errors. While Artur was sensation in August and September, he has had some injury niggles and at 36 he may not have many seasons in his locker when he wants to put his body through the mill, hurling himself across the ground. Whether Begovic is worth more than £8m or not, AFCB have to look at the goalkeeping position at some point. Artur has not had to make way for Adam Federici on very many occasions and the level of keeper that AFCB need to come in and to be a number one is going to be more than they have ever paid for a keeper in the past. To think that everyone was astonished when a similar fee was paid for Tyrone Mings not so long ago to set a new club record at the time shows how fast the club has moved on.
Bournemouth have only got two strikers that they paid £10m or more for in Benik Afobe and Jordan, but the signings now are moving the bar up all the time and the asking price for a top keeper is not peanuts. Stoke City were forced into upping their offer for Lee Grant, the Derby Co keeper to £1.75m plus £750,000 add-ons, so what price for Begovic? Begovic only joined Chelsea in July 2015 and his transfer fee then was £8m. Had Courtois not be recalled he could have been Chelsea's number one as his record at Stoke City was extremely good. At 29 he is at the right age to be a strong number one, but convincing Chelsea to let a player go in a key back up position is going to be difficult. Still this is where we learn if AFCB want to spend what they can to get who they want or if they still have some limits and other options up their sleeve. In the last 24 hours, AFCB have also been linked with Irish international Robbie Brady of Norwich City. That would be quite a compatriot for Harry Arter to play next to at AFCB.
I find it hard to imagine how difficult it must be for Adam Federici at AFCB. He knows he is the number two and changing the manager's mind on that has not been easy for him. While he had an opportunity against Stoke City, through a back injury to Artur Boruc, it is not the way he would have liked to win a place in the side.
Feds and Artur - the gloves are off.
The reappearance of Federici in front of an AFCB away crowd gladly did not have memories for him of Man City from last season. Adam knew he had to play well this time and he probably thought he would have been kept busier than he was. In the first half I think there was only a header from Ryan Shawcross that actually counted as a shot on target from Stoke. But the second half it was a different matter. Federici made the save from Wilfred Bony's header look fairly routine, and he must have been one of the most annoyed players on the pitch when he saw Simon Francis give a penalty away a second later.
When a team miss a penalty there is a kind of belief that luck could be on your side and that gives more of an invisibility to keepers who can say to themselves - I'm not going to get beat today - and Federici through himself into a fair number of saves, particularly the point blank save from Walters, when he was not favourite to keep it out. There was a good amount of covering from his defenders that were doing all they could to help out, and I felt the lads really worked well together to cope with the Stoke City threat when it stepped up. Whether Boruc feels well enough to come back for the Arsenal game is something only he will know, but it is likely that if Artur says he is okay that he will take his shirt back. So Federici is a hero for a day, but he is valued much higher than that. While Eddie has kept Boruc as the number one, he has always been behind Federici as class act, and it is just unfortunate that AFCB can't offer him more game time. But Boruc's form this season has been worthy of him staying the number one.
There was no indication that AFCB's players were at all anxious about playing Stoke City. While they knew it was a massive game with the double-header of Arsenal and Liverpool coming next, it was a display that said a lot about how the side is desperate to do well and go into the big matches with something positive and they could only do that by going at Stoke City at full pelt from the off. In the past we have seen the side perhaps feel sorry for itself, when things haven't gone right. That was perhaps the story of the defeat to Sunderland, but this game against Stoke was a game that the players knew they could win and it was clear to me that Howe had sent the players out with the view that they owed the away fans something. The stat of no away wins was great motivation of course and with it being 25 years since a win against Stoke City there were some records to put right. Moreover, it was Eddie Howe's 50th game in charge of the side for a Premier League match.
Simon Francis will have been delighted to get the first away win.
While I don't want to take anything away from AFCB, I do think it was a good time to play Stoke City. They had done well before the international break and many of their players had been involved in tough international games like Anautovic and Shaqiri, while AFCB's Harry Arter and Jack Wilshere had been involved in winning camps over the international break. AFCB's batteries were re-charged and that extra energy and positivity was boosted again by bringing in Adam Federici and Nathan Aké who were eager to impress.
So team selection was excellent and in midfield AFCB were extremely strong. Gosling and Arter know each others game well and with Wilshere getting between Stoke's midfield and defence, there was always a problem for Stoke when AFCB broke quickly with the pace of King and Stanislas. It was a very balanced team and John Willliams at BBC Radio Solent was confident even before kick off when he saw the team, as he felt it was set up to be a hard to beat side. There was strength through the middle that was improved with the addition of Aké, and the team needed to be tough against a strong team like Stoke.
It was a tough victory away at Stoke City. The team had to dig really deep to keep the Potters out in the last 20 minutes and while Mark Hughes disliked the way that AFCBs's players looked to slow the game down, and stall for time, when making subs or having players down, it is nothing that Stoke City wouldn't have done themselves if they were in the same position. I was delighted with the fact that the lads held out. Against Crystal Palace it was not such a good outcome, but perhaps the team is learning that they have to be brave in that last 20 minutes to hold out in such games. There were moments when hearts were in mouths though, like the Shaqiri chance that he blasted over the bar and the header from Jonathan Walters that was directed right at Federici in the last few minutes, as well as the goal line clearance from Arter. So Stoke City had moments to get something from the game, even without the missed penalty but, like Eddie Howe, I felt it was a deserved win. AFCB were so dominant in that first half and should have been two or three to the good had Roger East been a little fairer with his decisions shall we say.
It was a hard game to close out but AFCB used their heads to frustrate Stoke City.
While the Cherries have still found goals hard to come by, they defended extremely well under a great deal of second half pressure. The sight of Peter Crouch coming on and Jonathan Walters who so often snatches goals was a big test for AFCB's defenders, but they were not distracted. I thought Callum Wilson was lucky not to pick up a card for the way he came off the pitch when being subbed, but it did put a smile on my face. He enjoyed it too, clapping the fans and taking his time to get to Afobe who was waiting to come on.
At times it wasn't pretty. AFCB were perhaps running out of steam at the end, but it was good to see Marc Pugh get a run out and Adam Federici will just be glad to have ended his long wait to play his part on the pitch - he made some very important saves - even if they were ones he would have expected to save.
You could hear the disappointment of Eddie Howe in his post-match interview at Portsmouth. While his team had played well and probably should have won the game, he was less than delighted with the goals that were scored against his side and the last minute equaliser was painful as he would not have wanted any weakness to be shown in the last 10 minutes of a game not matter whether it was a friendly or not. Eddie said that all the goals that Portsmouth scored were poor from an AFCB defencive point of view and I have to agree with that. While Gary Roberts is a good player that should he can make powerful runs at the heart of AFCB's defence, there was not enough haste in getting to him and being strong enough in Francis' tackle to put him off. Federici saw the ball go past him in a flash, and it was not the start that would have filled any confidence in the Cherries' defence.
Adam Federici is already under pressure.
The second goal was more of a personal nightmare for Adam Federici, who should have made a better attempt at a save, but the keeper situation is just something that AFCB find hard to solve. How long will AFCB allow personal clangers to continue is the worry. At some point, the players have to take responsibility and think more clearly about what they are doing, and work out the scenarios or implications of their actions if they are likely to end up costing the team or not. Federici made a couple of wrong decisions and it is more costly when playing in goal than when you make a mistake up field and don't make the pass you should have. All I hope is that Federici does not keep hold of the mistakes in his head and takes each game as a fresh, clean sheet to prove that he can concentrate fully for the 90 minutes. I expect Artur Boruc will get to play against Reading, but Adam will want another chance to show what he can do perhaps against Cardiff City. Winning is a habit they say. AFCB will feel the need to get a bit of steam up in terms of results with the hard Premier League start they have. So while the Portsmouth game did not have the result Eddie wanted, it is likely to give the team more reason to up their game in the next match to please their manager. Transfer strategy nearing completion Welcome Brad Smith - the completion of Brad Smith's signing leaves space for a couple of more players in the 25-man squad and AFCB fans will be looking at a central defender to be signed in the next few days/weeks.
The Cherries let in a colossal 67 goals last season. It is something that you would expect the manager to try and address but rather than signing a new goal keeper or any central defenders, if you exclude Nathan Aké for his preference for midfield, it has been in midfield where Eddie Howe has seen the greatest weakness. There is more time for him to sign a centre-back or two yet but he has not jumped at that area as the key signing to get in. While Tommy Elphick as well as Sylvain Distin have left it is perhaps hoped that Baily Cargill can be more than just a covering player. Still an experienced dedicated centre-half would consolidate the back four and keep more of an element of competition. I don't want to see players learning the job and covering as Simon Francis had to do last season when Elphick was injured if there is a capable centre-half that AFCB can bring in before the start of the season. The Daily Star has today said that AFCB are planning a double swoop for QPR's Steven Caulker and Nedum Onuoha. Onuoha is particularly interesting as an England U21 player and former Man City graduate. Caulker is much more travelled and has had a senior England cap but is still on 24.
Will AFCB strengthen the back four before mid-August?
There were times last season when Artur Boruc and Adam Federici also came up short in the last campaign and yet they will remain the keepers that have been assigned the task to lower that goals against column and they'll have to be more confident and authoritative with the back four to do this. In Elphick the team has lost an organiser and a leader and there needs to be clear instruction given to the players when to step up and shout when players are not being properly marked. Simon Francis may well prove better at this than expected as he will no longer be in the shadows of Tommy Elphick, but Steve Cook will also need to be more precise in his decisions and work to ensure he and Francis keep a tight line against the quality attackers they will come up against. They have no harder task than their first game when Zlatan Ibrahimovic is likely to be looking to get off to a flyer.
Transfer Watch Yesterday AFCB were looking at adding to the U21 squad with Bolton's Rob Holding but had a bid turned down there may be another increased offer to come yet. Jordan Ibe is set to fly to Chicago to join up with AFCB's squad today. Confirmed Jordan Ibe has signed on a four-year deal.
There has been quite a lot of energy by the English Football League (EFL) being put into changing or what they would consider improving the pyramid system in the last few months. Their latest initiative was to suggest making another league and bringing the number of league clubs up to 100. Now they want the Premier League Academy teams to take part in the EFL Trophy and 16 of the 20 Premier League clubs will put teams in to play against League One and Two clubs in the competition. It has not been announced which will be the 16 Premier League academy's to take part in what was previously the Johnstone's Paint sponsored Trophy. The EFL is being rebranded though and a lot of effort is being put into revitalising the competition with the aim of improving the U21 players in the country by giving them more meaningful fixtures. The idea is only to be a trial in the new season and may be scrapped if it does not work well. Opponents to the idea have been Portsmouth, Accrington Stanley, AFC Wimbledon and Hartlepool Utd. I imagine much of their complaint surrounds the worry of Premier League clubs reducing the number of layers they have out on loan if they want their players to be involved in this competition.
Jordan Green may be one of AFCB's U21 players
to benefit from the revamped EFL Trophy.
I don't suppose it is any coincidence that AFCB's official website has been getting us all to pay attention to the 'Next generation' series of articles as the club encourages us to know more about the young players who are at the club now. The acid test will be how well supported such games are and whether the academy players can benefit from the extra games against league players. In principal I see it as a good way of ensuring more players at the top clubs get more regular run outs but I also see why some clubs at the bottom end of the pyramid season just see it as eroding their chances to further their own players who now have to play against young players who are getting the best facilities and benefits at being at top academies. That means they might not get as far in the competition as they might have done of course and lessens their experience. The haves and the have nots. We are beginning to see the power and weight of the Premier League clubs now fully unfold and by putting £1m into the £1.95m prize pot it is something that the EFL is keen to see flourish even if it is small beer in terms of how much the Premier League clubs could put in. Meanwhile, Adam Federici has signed a new three-year contract keeping at Dean Court until summer 2019. AFCB have also been linked with Aston Villa's, Jordan Veretout according to the Daily Mail.
Eddie Howe won't have had too long to reflect on the Man Utd game but he will be concerned with the team's run at end of the last season. It is gone now and he'll be picking things apart for the things that his side could have done better, but he is adamant that the team will not be completely restructured. Whether that gives hopes to a few players who might be wondering what might be happening to them, it is clear that the club will invest again. The final table shows that it was tight between success and failure in reality with only five precious points being the safety gap that saw the Cherries over the line. Yet, what may have seen unlikely to some has been achieved and sides up to 11th only finished five points better off than AFCB.
Eddie will attempt to bring the side back stronger.
There were signs again at Old Trafford though that the team is still weak and vulnerable in some positions. While Adam Federici made some fantastic saves, he would have hoped for more protection on some occasions and switching off for a second against a side like Man Utd undid much of the good work that the side did in the first half. While it is easy to pick holes in not making it more difficult for top sides like United, Spurs and Man City - these games are what Eddie Howe will get more from in terms of taking his side forward. Whatever the club decides is the best way forward in regard to player numbers to bring in and those to move on, I don't believe that AFCB can think of themselves as anything less than a side that has proved its merit to be in the Premier League. Improving on that though is going to be tough, but it has to be tried to be done. Everyone currently at the club knows that this may mean splitting up a few players who have taken the club such a long way, but they'll also know it is necessary for the side to progress again. Euros 2016 - A great start for the Welsh and England done at the death.
I thought it was a little unfair to blame Adam Federici for Greece's wonder goal in the friendly against Australia. Giannis Maniatis hit an absolute pearler, and I don't think any keeper would have been able to get anywhere near it, if he was doing his job and waiting on the edge of his box, in case he needed to make a sweeper clearance. Australia should look towards their midfielders and a lack of closing down, but that is no consolation to Federici who has been an easy target for the press.
Adam could do with a bit of good luck for a change.
Federici is unlucky in that a 60 yard lob is not going to be on target many times no matter how often a player tries, and to do it in a live match situation is pretty amazing. However, it happened and I hope Adam can forget about it. He is used to having to deal with bad memories like the FA Cup semi-final goal that Arsenal's Alexis Sanchez scored against him as a Reading keeper. Handling errors and positioning mistakes will cost sides and I suppose we should just be pleased it was not in an AFCB game. Just for once though, it is right to congratulate the skill of the Greek midfielder rather than any fault of the keeper. Let's hope that we see some more spectacular goals like that in the Euro's although not against England or Poland please!
Today we will see England take on Australia in a friendly at the Stadium of Light. While most England fans will be watching the form of their heroes against a tidy Australian team who play for a country that of course do not like to lose anything when it comes to sport, especially to the Poms. Adam Federici will also line up for the Aussies in this game against players that he has faced in a few games in the Premier League but for him it is a real opportunity to show AFCB fans how good he is.
Adam Federici should be aiming to be no1 in 2016-17.
Adam Federici should not have been pleased at playing so few AFCB games this last season - 12 in all. He has been the number two to an Artur Bouc who has been injured for much of the season and yet he has not been able to dislodge the Polish keeper from being the main starter between the sticks. While the cup matches have kept Federici in some kind of form it is not ideal for any national keeper to be having to wait for chances to get on the pitch as a number two. He can start to try and address that by performing well tonight. I find his shot stopping as good as most top-flight keepers but he does make mistakes and does not perhaps fill the goal as well as Boruc in terms of size. It is also a bit comfortable for Federici to be a replacement at AFCB if Boruc has a problem. While Adam still gets picked for his country he has no big worries about trying to grab the top shop at earn Court while below him I wonder how hard he is pushed by Ryan Allsop? There are only a few keepers that get to play for their country and in the Premier League and Federici has to start seeing himself as a keeper that must start games. He'll have his work cut out tonight against the young Marcus Rashford and Dele Alli, but he could not ask for a better stage to pull off some sensational saves to get the attention of his manager and those who wonder if he really is a keeper that is challenging Artur Boruc for that AFCB shirt. Also in the action Harry Arter and Eunan O'Kane could also be in action against the Netherlands for the Republic of Ireland in their friendly. Adam Federici is only on the bench!
The players can now go finally on their summer breaks with a big thanks
having been received from the fans up at Old Trafford.
Wayne Rooney notched up his 100th goal at Old Trafford to set up Man Utd 's win against AFCB in the last Premier League game of the season. In a fairly even first half the Cherries showed that they have perhaps started to learn a little about playing some of the very best sides in the Premier League. Only Wayne Rooney's 43rd minute goal separated the sides at the break and Marc Pugh had been given a chance just before that in the box which was blocked after a strong run down the right wing from Simon Francis. But it was United who were the class act and Marcus Rashford's second half goal, followed by another from substitute Ashley Young confirmed United's dominance, even if Chris Smalling put into his own net three minutes into extra time.
Eddie Howe brought in Dan Gosling and left Harry Arter out of the squad for this rearranged fixture. Harry is still suffering with his Achilles which will be worrying for him and the Republic of Ireland ahead of the Euros. Junior Stanislas was back on the bench along with Jordan Holmes and 17-year-old Corey Jordan.
Jason Tindall gives the team news.
It was Man Utd that were the side that started on the front foot winning a corner as early as the eighth minute and had another after 12 minutes. Anthony Martial was fired just wide of the right of the goal. While Marc Pugh won a few free kicks it was Utd that were pressing for that first goal. Pressure built up with another Man United corner on 19 minutes.
Steve Cook did get forward but had his shot blocked, and Marc Pugh came closest for AFCB when he had a great chance to test De Gea but found he could only find a defender with his shot. Then Man Utd won a free kick and Rooney found the bottom corner from the centre of the box to put Utd 1-0 up.
The second half was a little more attack-minded from AFCB when Callum Wilson made an early break but just could not keep control of the ball. Dan Gosling also had a ball pulled back by Ritchie for him and put the shot over.
It was United fans that might have expected the referee to point to the spot when Steve Cook got little of the ball and a lot of Mata, as he went to ground, but nothing was given and Tommy Elphick could clear in cool fashion just after 50 minutes.
A corner a few minutes later saw Michael Carrick hit a thunderous drive that came off the underside of the crossbar from 25 yards, with a slight deflection off of Tommy Elphick. AFCB were struggling to get possession but Wilson was looking for any opportunity on the break. A free kick special saw Josh King put a ball far too strong down the side when a simple cross into the box might have provided a chance.
AFCB were getting numbers back in good numbers against the constant Utd pressure. Rashford made a sensational run beating a couple of AFCB players on the right before Lingard tested AFCB's blocking abilities. Federici was then forced into a great save a Valencia drive of 30 yards. From the corner that followed Chris Smalling headed wide.
Man Utd were back on it with Rooney finding Mata who turned AFCB's central defenders inside out and pulled a good save off of Federici again.
Max Gradel replaced Pugh and King was subbed for Afobe on 67 minutes. Daniels then had to make a last ditch tackle to stop Lingard getting through. Wilson timed his run too soon when Afobe won a good header, but AFCB's number 13 was offside as he slotted home.
AFCB were gradually worn down when Utd kept the ball around the box and eventually played it deep to Valencia who headed back to Rashford who made it 2-0 on 74 minutes. There were calls from AFCB fans for Juan Iturbe but it looks like it was only a farewell song for the on loan Paraguayan.
Ander Herrera then replaced Juan Mata as Van Gaal looked to rest players ahead of the FA cup final. Rashford was also replaced by Mamphis Depay, while Lewis Grabban came on for AFCB in place of Wilson for the last 11 minutes. Depay missed a header to widen the winning margin but he was offside in any case.
Man Utd made their last sub when as Ashley Young came on for Anthony Martial. An overhead kick that flew over the bar from Steve Cook would have been a fine reward for AFCB's hard work, but they just couldn't match United on the day. That was confirmed when Rooney dinked in Ashley Young with Tommy Elphick and Steve Cook moving up and leaving Federici exposed and at 3-0 it was now comfortable for United who could have had a fourth if Young had timed his run better in the 88th minute.
A 90+3 minute goal for Bournemouth did arrive though when Max Gradel's shot was diverted by Chris Smalling into United's net. Summary The singing contest was easily won by the AFCB fans but Eddie Howe's side still have much to work towards in terms of keeping the ball and carrying a threat to these top sides. Far better sides than AFCB have been beaten by a bigger margin though at Old Trafford and Eddie Howe can be relatively pleased with how the side was well in the game in the first half and might have caused Man Utd some anxiety if they had held out longer. AFCB's game was not strong enough on the day though to hold United back. AFCB Federici, Francis, Elphick, Cook, Daniels, Ritchie, Gosling, Surman, Pugh (Gradel 66), Wilson (Grabban 79), King (Afobe 67)
AFCB Subs Gradel, Stanislas, Afobe, Grabban, O'Kane, Jordan, Holmes Man Utd de Gea, A Valencia, Smalling, Blind, Borthwick-Jackson, Carrick, Lingard, Mata (Herrera 75), Rooney, Martial (Young 84), Rashford (Depay 79)
Man Utd Subs Jones, Depay, Young, Romero, Herrera, Varela, Pereira No ratings this time - can't fault the players for a great season.
While Reading had a great run in the FA Cup last season it was not the happiest of days for Adam Federici at Wembley in the semi-final against Arsenal. Just the name Alexis Sanchez probably has soeme very bad memories for Adam, but he will have the experience of the big game to take with him into fixtures like the upcoming cuptie against Everton.
Adam Federici will probably step in for Artur Boruc.
I have been impressed with the way Adam Federici has knuckled down at Dean Court and come into the team when called upon. He has a difficult enough journey whenever Australia play at home or in international qualifiers, but he has found the south coast just as favourable even if a little colder than playing for country. Now it is the FA Cup that comes up again. It is a competition that he will always been linked with now and while he might not like that at the moment, he might change some opinions by helping AFCB progress to the sixth round. As a shot stopper, Adam has been an excellent player to have at Dean Court. He has had a good run this season in the FA Cup and will be crucial in trying to keep a clean sheet against an Everton attack that are thel third equa highest scorers in the Premier League. While Adam has been the number two at Bournemouth, I don't believe that Eddie Howe has any worries about Adam's ability to play in the big matches and this one will be one of biggest of this campaign.
Adam has played well in the cup competitions.
We know outfield players usually need a string of games to really feel at their best in matches, but it can't be much easier for keepers who are suddenly thrust into a game situation having been on the bench for several games. Adam's attitude though has always been good and he will be very keen to get back to Wembley and perhaps correct a few of those headlines that were written last year. Give me the Minute of the First Goal Scored! This week we are having a slight change to the usual score prediction challenge. Now we are asking you in what minute will the first goal be scored between AFCB and Everton - also put down the goal scorer, if you really feel that you know it all! Tweet me, before Saturday morning, the predicted minute of the first goal to @PeterBell19 The closest minute time to the actual goal going in will win the prize no matter which team the goal goes in for. If we have more than one winner we will draw the winner from a hat. The prize this week is the AFC Bournemouth sweat bands that no one was able to walk off with last week! There are lots of entrants already but has any one got the time right?
While Federici might not become the number one shot stopper at Stoke, he will battle for the number two keeper spot with Jacob Haugaard, I'd have thought, which s better than his prospects at AFCB.
