Super sub Danjuma sinks Bristol City at Dean Court 1-0

 Match report

18 October 2020

AFCB 1 v 0 Bristol City

It is still not the fluent Bournemouth we want to see but an Arnaut Danjuma goal, having come on from the subs bench, late on in the second half is going to lift the mood at Dean Court. Bournemouth had struggled to get any clean strike on target and had been fortunate not to go behind when King cleared a shot off the line, and Bristol came close with Diédhiou hitting the post in the first half. Bournemouth played with more fire in the second half and the goal was an excellent reward having stepped up the performance. But the Championship is not proving an easy ride and Bournemouth have plenty to work on in front of goal.

Danjuma gets the job done.

Jason Tindall brought Dan Gosling into the centre of midfield, Solanke started upfront, Adam Smith came into the left wing-back position and Junior Stanislas started on the right-wing. Jefferson Lerma was injured while Philip Billing, Diego Rico and Arnaut Danjuma moved to the bench.

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Match Report

Bournemouth could go second with a win tonight. The Cherries keep the ball well at the start, but then Bristol get the first shot away from Semenyo who shoots wide from the centre of the box.

Diédhiou is offside. A chance for Bournemouth to get forward. Bristol City are pressing well and Bournemouth are making slow progress to get out of their own half.

Josh King is offside from a Lewis Cook pass. Solanke is tripped on the edge for the box. Bournemouth have a central free kick. Step up Mr Stanislas. Junior fires the kick just past the left post.

Diédhiou is offside again. Bournemouth won't mind that if the flag keeps going up. Adam Smith has been fouled. Taylor Moore has conceded corner to Bournemouth with Jack Stacey doing well.

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Adam Smith makes a good tackle to stop a Bristol City break. Adam Smith gets in an offside position. Stanislas blasts the ball across the box but King can't get to it. Bakinson takes aim and forces a save from Begovic, corner to Bristol City. Diédhiou has headed over.

Stacey is getting forward but has been fouled by Rowe. Solanke does well on the turn and puts in a cross but it is cleared for a corner with King coming in. The keeper drops the ball but gets away with it.

Bristol City go close with the ball coming off Steve Cook for a corner. Josh King clears off the line from the corner and Kalas' header. All the other games tonight in the Championship have had a goal. Bournemouth have kept clean sheets in their last two home games, but they nearly conceded then.

Begovic finds Solanke with a long ball. The striker forces a save from Bentley. Steve Cook goes for a bicycle kick but his foot is too high. Josh King fouls. Mepham wins a free kick in his own half.

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Semenyo wins a free kick. Begovic saves off the post from Diédhiou for a Bristol City corner.

AFCB Possession 50%, shots 2, shots on target 0, corners 3, fouls 3
Bristol City Possession 50%, shots 6, shots on target 1, Corners 4, fouls 6

Second half

No changes at half time. King does well chasing down a ball but Gosling can't control it and shoots wide. Adam Smith finds King in space but he is blocked.

Bournemouth have started better this half. Solanke passes to King who backheels but Solanke is blocked. Lloyd Kelly wins a free kick.

Kelly crosses for Solanke and his flick hits the far post - close! Kelly is getting forward and Stanislas comes inside but shoots wide. Bournemouth are piling on the pressure but still haven't managed a shot on target. It has to be time for Danjuma soon.

Solanke has a shot blocked. Bournemouth have a corner. Stacey fouls. Begovic saves a header from Diédhiou.

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Lewis Cook has a shot but it's right at the keeper - at least that is a shot on target. Lloyd Kelly into Solakne, he goes down but not a penalty. Stanislas makes a foul.

Danjuma replaces Stanislas on 76 minutes, not before time Tindall used his subs. Solanke has a shot that goes wide.

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Chris Brunt replaces Semenyo on 78 minutes. Danjuma has a go from far out but shoots wide. 80 minutes and Bournemouth take the lead. Lewis Cook plays it through to Solanke. Solanke and Danjuma combine and Danjuma chips it over Bentley to make it 1-0. It was a great touch from Solanke, but Danjuma had to be quick to make the finish from an acute angle. Danjuma's third goal of the season.

Chris Martin and Nakhi Wells are on for Diédhiou and Jack Hunt as Bristol City chase the game on 82 minutes.

Adam Smith shoots but it's an easy save for Bentley. Bournemouth are starting to increase their shots on target.

Into added time. Bristol City have a free kick, foul by Adam Smith. Steve Cook heads away.

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Summary

Bournemouth found it hard at first to get forward in this game. They tried to play positively but just weren't getting shots on goal and Bristol Cty were good opposition. The whole game changed when Danjuma came on. He has the Midas touch in front of goal at the moment and scored a great goal when he combined with Solanke. The clean sheet will also be pleasing with Begovic playing well and King clearing one off the line in the first half, while Steve Cook was like a wall in defence. It was a narrow win but the three points put Bournemouth second six points behind Reading in second place. A good night's work.

AFCB line-up

AFCB Subs: Travers, Simpson, Rico, Billing, Riquelme, Danjuma, Surridge

Bristol City
1 Bentley. 22 Kalas, 23 Moore, 26 Vyner, 2 Hunt (Martin 82),  10 Paterson, 30 Bakinson,
11 O'Dowda, 25 Rowe, 18 Semenyo (Brunt 78), 9 Diédhiou (Wells 82)

Bristol City Subs
3 Dasilva, 4 Nagy, 7 Martin, 12 O'Leary, 21 Wells, 29 Brunt, 42 Massengo

A big game for Lloyd Kelly

Tonight's match against Bristol City is going to be a special match for Lloyd Kelly. He signed for Bournemouth from Bristol City in May 2019 and has enjoyed just one season in the Premier League before finding himself back in the Championship with Bournemouth. Things could have been very different had Kelly not signed for Bournemouth, but he has a chance to show how much he has progressed against the club he grew up with.

Official AFCB Photo of Lloyd Kelly

Tonight's game is a match Kelly could have missed out on if he had been red carded in the previous game against Watford. That may make Lloyd even keener to play well against Bristol City, to show that the bad tackle last game was unlike him. We saw that Chris Mepham scored at Watford coming to the team's aid, but the defence will really want a shut out in this game and Bournemouth have a better chance of that with Lloyd Kelly in the starting line-up.

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The departure of Charlie Daniels this week would have had more impact if Bournemouth didn't have the luxury of Lloyd Kelly on their books. While he now plays in central defence he can always play as a left-back if needed. But he has added a bit more energy to the left side of defence and his desire to get forward paid off last game when his shot was redirected by Mepham to Bournemouth's good fortune in added-time. 

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No doubt, that last moment on the pitch made Lloyd Kelly feel pretty good about himself and the team and we need him to start playing at the best of his abilities if Bournemouth are going to add to their number of clean sheets. Bristol City offer one of the best attacks in the division and the Cherries have only managed two clean sheets in their seven games so far. 

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Keeping Lloyd Kelly fit this season could be half the battle in keeping Bournemouth into the promotion place. We need to see Bournemouth start to defend better if they are to keep pace with Reading that opened up a seven-point gap at the top last night. 

Possible AFCB line-up

What are Bournemouth lacking to get back to winning ways?

The match against Watford was symptomatic of what has been happening in recent games for the Cherries. While they fell behind in this game, unlike other games, they had trouble in breaking down a solid defence. All credit to Watford who made it difficult for Bournemouth, but the Cherries are lacking a bit of quality in the final third and perhaps the fitness of David Brooks is going to be crucial to Bournemouth hope this season.

Solanke came on as a first half sub but fired blanks at Watford.

While one player is often thought of being the missing piece in the puzzle, I don't think Bournemouth are playing well enough as a whole at the moment to be any further up the table than where they are. Josh King and Dominic Solanke didn't make much of a dent in Watford's defence and when Solanke did get half chances his shooting was far from steady or accurate. 

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The early promise of Danjuma's quick feet seems to have faded and Bournemouth perhaps just need that spark to start believing in themselves again. Whether that will come with the addition of David Brooks remains to be seen. It can take a few games for players to find their feet as perhaps we saw with Lloyd Kelly who didn't have a great first game back against the Hornets.

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While Jason Tindall might not want to make too many changes his hand has been forced with Jefferson Lerma getting injured and Adam Smith had to miss the last game as he still wasn't ready to return. Bournemouth need a bit of luck on the injury front. It can make all the difference to a successful season or not.

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The challenges don't get any easier at this point either. Bristol City are in good form and will be a tough test for Tindall's men. But if they can win these games they will put themselves in a great position and I think that is what Tindall needs to get through to his players. The players need that excitement of knowing they get a big reward if they can beat teams in and around the top places.

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Previous post on Cherry Chimes -Mepham scores an added-time goal to hold Wayford to a draw 1-1

There's much to like the Championship

While Bournemouth fans might be hanging on in hope for a reprieve on Sunday and another season in the Premier League, I thought it might be prudent to see what life in the Championship might bring and some positives about football in the lower divisions.

A bit more of this will be okay.

The first thing I'd say is that there is more chance of success in the Championship. There are three promotion places up for grabs and the season always goes on forever, with 46 games and the play-offs to keep teams interested into May. We can balance that with the fact that three teams are relegated, but hopefully Bournemouth would be more occupied with the other end of the table.

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While the Championship will no doubt consider adding VAR, it is not there at the moment and the problems that we have had this season may well defer it for another season in the Championship. Goal line technology was introduced to the Championship since 2017-18, so we'll still get that I'd imagine. The other decisions will be left up to the referee and assistant linesman, so we will have plenty of chances to get angry at the officials again!

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There will be some reasonable local rivalries to play as well with Reading, Bristol City and Millwall on the away ground lists. We might also get some London teams staying in the division. QPR will definitely be there and Brentford and/or Fulham could be on our road maps, even if we won't be visiting Chartlon Athletic, unless it is in one of the cups.

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There is also the chance to visit old cauldron's of dislike, such a Nottingham Forest, the windy unpleasantness of the Bet365 (Britannia stadium) and lengthy trips up north to Preston and Middlesbrough. What is not to like?

We may well see many more new and young players who haven't cost the earth and it could be that we get to see more emerging talent from the academy, like Sam Surridge, Gavin Kilkenny and Nnamdi Ofoborh.

Okay, the Premier League has been an exciting home for five years and Bournemouth might not get back there if things don't work out on Sunday. But Bournemouth have created some history in the Premier League and we have enjoyed our time there I think. Wherever the team is next year, there will be plenty of football to look forward to. I have probably only scratched the surface of reasons why the Championship is a great place to play football, so by all means add your own reasons for liking it in the comments.

Previous post on Cherry Chimes - Ramsdale has been unbelievable this season

Bournemouth sign England U21 defender

AFCB have made their first new signing this summer as defender Lloyd Kelly of Bristol City has joined the club for a reports £13m having played two seasons in the Championship and a nine appearance for the England U20s and three for the U21s, respectively.

Photo posted on Lloyd Kelly Twitter feed:
AFCB make their first summer signing - Lloyd Kelly of Bristol City

Bournemouth have moved very quickly moved for the England U21 defender and Bristol City report that the signing was made for a record fee for them. Kelly will give new competition to AFCB's problem position of left-back. While Kelly has only played 48 appearances in all competitions for Bristol City over the last two seasons, he has clearly impressed Bournemouth's scouting team. The defender joined Bristol City form the age of 12 and is a product of the Bristol City Academy.

Lloyd only made his first team debut for Bristol City in a Carabao Cup match against Plymouth in 2017. He has since scored twice in the Championship and was awarded Championship Player of the week on 19 March 2018 for week 38 of the 2017/18 season.

Lloyd says, "The move has come around quickly, but I'm happy to be here and can't wait to start playing."

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Eddie Howe was equally as enthusiastic about the signing saying, "Kelly is athletic, versatile, physically excellent with a very bright future ahead of him." To sign another England U21 player is a further indication that AFCB are targeting home-nation top young professionals and that they see this strategy as one of the main pillars of the club's long-term plans to grow in the Premier League.

Lloyd will be competing with Diego Rico and Charlie Daniels for the left back position while Brad Smith is still making appearances for Seattle Sounders in the MLS.

AFCB have a full story on the new signing. Twitter followers can keep tabs on Lloyd @lloydkelly4

In other news, AFCB are reported to be preparing a bid for Burnley keeper Nick Pope, reports the Daily Mail.

Bournemouth have King to thank for holding Bristol City

Match Report

Bristol City 1 v 1 AFCB

27 July 2018

AFCB official picture: Josh King opening the scoring at Ashtn Gate.

Bournemouth looked a little ring rusty as they say at Ashton Gate. They needed an individual bit of brilliance from Josh King to fire them ahead, but City were running the show in the first half and pulled a goal back through new signing Andreas Weimann. The game was mainly played in Bournemouth's half and City's fitness looked much sharper than the Cherries at this stage of pre-season. Begovic was not overly pressed, but Howe will want to see more intent from his side in the coming games.

It was unusual to see Eddie Howe partner Defoe with Josh King and Mings with Steve Cook. But it was a pretty high-class side for the Cherries with a young bench. Brad Smith also had a rare start.

Bournemouth started well keeping position and getting an early cross in from the left. Defoe played a ball short to Ibe when he would have been on for a cross or a shot. Bristol City put a cross in but Taylor falls to the floor under pressure from Mings.

Brad Smith wins a free kick. Ibe finds King and a short pass to Defoe sees Jermain go close saved by O'Leary at the near post on six minutes. Bournemouth are moving very fluently. Bryan has a go from distance for City but it's well wide.

Eliasson puts a shot well over from 25 yards out. City get a good move going until Adam Smith comes in with a big tackle.City are starting to warm up with a long ball from pack finding Eliasson but the cross goes over everyone. Taylor is running free and Mings has to come across to stop Eliasson shooting

Bournemouth on the break, Pack goes to head but it falls to King. King goes to his right from 20 yards out and buries a low shot to the left of the keeper on 14 minutes to make it 0-1. King is making a claim for starting next season as the main striker up top with finishes like that.

There is a casual tempo to the game. King is away again, finds Defoe but he has mis-controlled it. The stadium looks pretty empty from the stands we can see. Paterson cuts inside and goes close with a shot just outside the right post - Begovic wasn't going to get there if it had been on target.

it's great to see Mings bringing the ball out from the back. Bournemouth are just starting to get more control again. Wiemann's cross is collected by Begovic. Adam Smith is putting in the challenges hard and Paterson felt that one. Surman tries to get Pugh more involved but the pas is cut out.

Mings stretches to head away a cross. Bristol city have been concentrating on the left side of the Cherries defence.

Eliasson puts another cross in but Weimann can't convert with his bicycle kick that goes wide. Adam Smith has to head away a cross by Hunt for a corner. baker goes for a header but there's no power in it as a goal kick goes to Bournemouth. Paterson finds Brownhill in front of goal but he blasts it over.

Bryan on the left's cross is cut out by Steve Cook. Adam Smith takes the ball well in the box from Ibe. He just can't get free of the defenders though.

Weimann is on a break but Mings carefully minds him away from goal. City have another corner. Free kick to Bournemouth. The Cherries were a bit sloppy playing from the back and gave the ball away. Tyrone Mings goes on a run but uses his arms on Hunt and is pulled up for it.

Hunt puts a ball in from the right and Pack knocks it down for Weimann who puts the ball in the net on 37 minutes. Begovic was out of position and had no protection leaving the roof of the net unguarded.

City have bossed the game and deserve to be at least level. They have another corner. Bournemouth are on the ball. A shot from distance is at the keeper.

Steve Cook has to cut out a cross from Eliasson and Brad Smith has to put another ball out for a corner for City. The clearance went close to Bournemouth's goal. 1-1 at half-time.

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Second half
Korey Smith has replaced Matt Taylor for City at half-time. Bournemouth win an early corner which Ibe takes. City clear. Pugh loses the ball and Mings goes through Eliasson in the middle of the pitch. Brad Smith and Pugh work a good cross on the left. King and Ibe now and Defoe looked to get a shot in but was blocked by Bryan, corner.

Ibe puts a cross in but Webster clears. Pisano replaces Bryan. Bournemouth are giving a few free kicks away. Surman this time. King goes on his own until he is eventually stopped in the City box.

Bournemouth are playing deep and a shot from Josh Brownhill is out for a corner. There's not much energy about the Cherries. Ibe gets a corner.

This has been a disjointed performance by AFCB. They just haven't done enough to be in charge of matters. It's the slowness of thought and passing that has let AFCB down. Another Bournemouth corner - can they make something from this one? No another corner on 63 minutes. City clear from their six yard box.

lewis Cook beats a couple of players. Eliasson on the break and he crosses to Weimann and the header is just wide of the right upright. Bournemouth were cut apart down their right wing.

Lewis Cook finds Defoe and his shot rises just over the bar. Weimanns coming off on 67 minutes replaced by Deidhiou, Paterson is replaced by Eisa and Hunt goes off for Pring. Eisa has a shot on his debut and forces a save to Begovic's right. Eisa has another chance to shoot and Begovic saves again. 

Begovic hashes a clearance. Brad Smith loses the ball. Defoe is subbed by Mahoney. AFCB have a corner and another. City now sub Pack for Walsh. Steve Cook finds Ibe and another corner.

Brad Smith has to make a last ditch tackle. AFCB have a corner and are subbing Brad Smith for Dobre on 83 minutes. An attempt goes inches wide from Steve Cook. Brad Smith keeps Eliasson out. Bournemouth have to clear again as Deidhiou puts the ball right on the six yard line.

King on the break to Dobre who fires over. We're into added time. Pugh up to King who gets a throw. Full-time 1-1.

Summary
Bournemouth got some more pre-season time in their legs with longer minutes on the pitch for many of the players. AFCb's start man was Josh King who made and scored a goal on his own. There was not much to be encouraged about but Tyrone Mings looked composed with Steve Cook at the back. Bournemouth need more from Defoe, Pugh and Ibe, while Adam Smith did look strong at right back.

AFCB
Begovic, A Smith, S Cook, Mings, B Smith ( Dobre 83), Ibe, L Cook, Surman, Pugh, King, Defoe (Mahoney 73)

AFCB Subs
Travers, Hobson, Ofoborh, Worthington, Mahoney, Surridge, Dobre

Bristol City
1 O'Leary, 3 Bryan (Pisano 53), 4 Webster, 6 Baker, 8 Brownhill, 10 Taylor (Smith 45), 14 Wiemann (Deidhiou 67), 19 Eliasson, 20 Paterson (Eisa 67), 21 Pack (Walsh 76), 32 Hunt (Pring)

Bristol City Subs
13 Wollacott, 2 Pisano, 7 Smith, 9 Deidhiou, 12 Walsh, 6 Pring, 18 Djuric, 22 Hegeler, 26 Eisa

What kind of test will Bristol City pose AFCB?

Bristol City may have some new signings on show against Bournemouth. City narrowly missed out in getting in the Championship play-off picture last season, but they are looking to improve on that.

AFCB will be a scalp if Bristol City get the better of them.

Among the new faces are Jack Hunt from Sheffield Wednesday, Hakeeb Adelakun from Scunthorpe United and Andreas Weimann of Derby County, Marley Watkins from Norwich City. This week Bristol City have continued their spending with the signing of Mo Eisa from Cheltenham Town. Eisa scored 25 goals from 50 games in League Two - I'd expect him to start against the Cherries, especially as Bobby Reid has been sold to Cardiff City.

Bristol City have also been on tour in Spain where they drew  2-2 with Real Balopédica and lost 1-0 to Rayo Vallecano.

Recent form aside Bristol City are a strong Championship side that are looking to play against teams like Bournemouth to reach the same level. Lee Johnson has done a great job already in not only keeping the team in the Championship since 2016, but making on of the promotion contenders last season as well as a strong English Football League Cup run that saw Bristol City beat Man Utd and eventually go out 3-5 to Man City on aggregate.

Bournemouth's side could include new signings Davis Brooks and Diego Rico and we could see Lys Mousset and Jordan Ibe wearing their new squad numbers.

You can watch the game on AFCBTV from 6.50pm.

In other news, Sky Sports reports that AFCB target Jefferson Lerma has put in a transfer request at Levante.

AFCB cool interest in Championship striker

SkySports are reporting that Bristol City striker Bobby Reid has been the subject of a £7m bid from WBA. Local paper Bristol Live has said the AFCB are still in the running but that the Cherries interest may have cooled.

Who will come to Dean Court this summer?

The Bristol striker appears to want to stay at Ashton Gate having done well their last season with 19 goals. Moving to WBA or AFCB would be a big move for the player. I only wonder would the Cherries be willing to out bid WBA and potentially others to secure the striker, when AFCB are yet to see if they themselves can move on players such as Lewis Grabban and Max Gradel? Bristol City are said to be holding out for £10m.

The sale of Benik Afobe has created some space, but the Cherries are quite heavy in striker numbers currently and while only 45 goals were scored by AFCB last season most fans would point to the defence and lack of clean sheets as being the main area of focus for Eddie Howe to improve the team. Priorities may have a say here and if Reid is not thought to be one for the moment, but a good prospect in two years time then AFCB may well have taken a back seat on the Robins' front man.

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What we can say is that AFCB are actively trying to get signatures across the line, even if they have not yet made any bids for players. The Championship is where we can expect some signings to come from with Tom Pearce of Leeds Utd attracting attention in recent days, despite having signed a new contract at the Yorkshire club.

Last summer AFCB brought in some big names and experience, but the rumours this summer are certainly circulating around non-Premier League players. Bobby Reid might be one that AFCB have decided is not ready yet and WBA may well have got in first now. 

Meanwhile, Bournemouth have been said to have monitored Djurgarden defender Felix Beijmo on more than 10 occasions, but the 20-year-old is expected to sign for German side Werder Bremen this week, according to Expressen. 

In other news, AFCB have named Nottingham Forest as a pre-season away fixture on Saturday 28 July 2018 at 3pm.

Will AFCB chase Liverpool striker?

Liverpool may have lost out in the Champion's League Final, but they have a wealth of talent in the forward department. One striker though who isn't going to find it easy to break int the starting line up could be available for a loan next season. Yes, AFCB are again being linked with Danny Ings and now that the former Bournemouth striker has shown he has recovered from his cruciate ligament injury, he has to be seen as a positive boost to Bournemouth's strike force if he could be captured.

If Ings becomes available then Eddie must try and entice him back to Dean Court.

Danny Ings may have aspirations to be a part of Liverpool's fight for the Premier League title in 2018/19. He is going to have to have a chat with Jurgen Klopp though to see what kind of game time he is likely to get up at Anfield. If it is less than to to 15 sub appearances and a few cup competitions it might be tempting for Ings to consider a loan move. Bournemouth have Jermain Defoe who has experience of being an international striker for England and the Cherries have struggled to make any of their strikers become an effective pair in front of goal. Ings could be the missing link.

What I have always liked about Ings is his energy and enthusiasm. Whether he has lost some of that sine his injury is not going to be really felt until he plays a good number of games. That is why a loan move is perhaps an appealing thought for the player and for AFCB. 

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Bournemouth could risk signing a Championship striker such as Bobby Reid at Bristol City but we know that Ings has played in the Premier League and has scored at this level. We have seen how difficult it can be for players like Afobe to adjust to that. Bournemouth fans also need a signing who will add some excitement to the season ahead, and Ings ticks the boxes for me in being a former player who has perhaps still got his best years to come.

Okay, Ings has had bad injuries. The Cherries do have great experience though at helping players who have been recovering from such injuries, and Ings may well feel a real boost from coming home as it were. Eddie should be on the phone now before others take a punt on Ings, because Danny could boost the Cherries goal count and he would be very well-received if he does turn the style back on at Dean Court.

In other news, Nathan Aké grabs a late equaliser for Netherlands against Italy. It was Nathan's first international goal.

What are the lessons from the Tomlin debacle?

AFCB's transfer history has been mixed in recent seasons. While Eddie Howe returned to the club in 2012 with a new squad fairly freshly assembled, by Paul Groves and Shaun Brooks, it has been piecemeal additions to the squad since then with some excellent signatures like Callum Wilson, Josh King, Ryan Fraser, Adam Smith and Max Gradel, but also some less successful additions like Tokelo Rantie, Juan Iturbe and yes Lee Tomlin.

Lee had high hopes when he joined AFCB of being a top Premier League player.

The Tomlin signing should have been a reasonably safe squad signing. He played extremely well in 2014-15 for Middlesbrough and was instrumental in that sides fourth round FA Cup win against the stellar stars of Man City. But as soon as he signed for AFCB it was an up hill battle for him to recover his fitness and form, while it looked even harder for him to find a real bond with the team. His lack of games was ultimately unsettling for him and then his frustration came out.

Lee Tomlin is now set to join Bristol City if he agrees terms.

But what can AFCB take from the experience of Lee Tomlin's period at the club. It is easy to say very little, but picking players with the desire and ability to take on some of the feelings that AFCB is no ordinary club is not simple to get across to players that have come from bigger clubs. It is a warning that could well repeat itself more often in the future as AFCB are now in the market for signing players from Europe's elite, and even further afield. The pillars that are important to Eddie Howe and Jason Tindall, which are the roots of AFCB, have to be bought into if a player is going to succeed at Bournemouth. It has been a feature of the side that there are no real stars. No one gets above their station or has a right to feel that they are more important than anyone else in the team, and that is really some of the defining elements that have given AFCB that feeling of togetherness. Moreover, that success is better when it is experienced by everyone as a group.

There will be more Lee Tomlins and I only hope that fans recognise that there are no guarantees that everyone is a good fit for their club no matter how good a player they may be. Hopefully Bristol City is a better fit for Lee. 


Not sure who AFCB should sign this summer? Have a go at making your own player - see side bar for Qzzr player maker, then tweet or Facebook your created player.

Tomlin can go at cut price

Watching all the gossip on Social media and the Bristol Post it would appear that Lee Tomlin won't be at AFCB much longer. It is clear that the Robins' fans are keen to land their man even if AFCB have not been in a hurry to cut ties with the former Middlesbrough striker. 

Lee Tomlin has made no secret of his dissatisfaction at not playing games at AFCB.

Whether the price is £2.5m or £1.5m I don't think Cherries fans are that bothered. Tomlin's signing was not good for the player or AFCB, and if the striker can find employment elsewhere I don't think too many would be upset at Dean Court. I had kind of hoped that Middlesbrough might even come back in for him but even Aitor Karanka has higher targets now that the Boro have been promoted.

Arguably Tomlin never got a run in the team at AFCB. He didn't recover quickly from injury and never looked fully match fit, but he did okay for Bristol City with six goals in 18 games. His decision to speak out though about what should or should not be happening with his playing or not last January was a mistake that looks like it has cost him his Premier League dream for the moment. He may even be kicking himself that he did not bide his time at Middlesbrough a bit longer rather than jump ship to AFCB. You can't have regrets though in football. AFCB will move on and so will Lee.

The main thing is that Lee should get an opportunity to play his football for someone and if that is Bristol City I hope he does well for them. Any reduction in wages due to players being taken off AFCB's books is just business. 

Friendlies
Last night Matt Ritchie turned out for Scotland in a friendly against Euro 2016 favourites France and the Scots were well beaten 3-0. Adam Federici was an unused sub in Australia's friendly against Greece which the Aussie's won 1-0.

Is Lee Camp next to exit the Cherries?

While AFCB have enjoyed unbelievable success in the last nine months there has been one player who I feel has been a bit of a casualty of the teams upward momentum. When the Cherries were promoted to the Championship they needed an experienced keeper and Lee Camp was the perfect fit. He never let the team down and pulled off some tremendous saves as the Cherries finished in a creditable 10th place. However, the signing of Artur Boruc first on loan and then on a season loan move before signing permanently this summer has left Lee Camp rather a drift.

We have not heard from Lee for a while and he
will have some hard decisions to make this summer.

There was talk about a month ago that Bristol City could well be looking to entice the former Forest and Derby keeper to their side as they look to establish themselves in the Championship, but they have also been looking at Southend's young  - Daniel Bentley. Surely, Lee would be a great keeper for a club in the Championship, but you wonder if not Bristol City or another team is he still wise to try and get back into the side at AFCB when Adam Federici has also joined the line of keepers vying for the shirt if Artur Boruc is injured.

With Brett Pitman deciding to ensure he gets game time by moving clubs, I expect Lee will similarly be considering his position having had a season where he saw little action on the south coast. As a shot stopper he is still a great asset to any team and Lee really deserves to be playing games.

The club also announced yesterday that keeper Ryan Allsop had signed a new one year contract at Dean Court. I suspect that Ryan could find himself on loan for part of the season again even if he has stated his intention for battle for the first team shirt.

Farewell Brett - you've been a club hero!

It is with a tinge of sadness that Brett Pitman is to end his second spell with AFCB. While the Jersey-man had his fair share of criticism during his time at the Cherries he also scored some vital goals for the club and not only steered them through the times when the club was about to go out of business but also was instrumental in getting the goals to get the team promoted through the leagues in their last few seasons. Now he is destined for Ipswich Town on a three-year contract in the Championship and I expect he'll do well there.

Brett has been a true warrior for AFCB.

All that was achieved with a middle spell that saw him play at Bristol City in the Championship for two-and-a-half seasons (2010-13) and score 20 league goals in 44 appearances. While he did not get as many minutes as he wanted on the pitch at City, he certainly came back to AFCB in November 2012 wanting to prove that he was good enough to play at that level. He more than proved that last season and in any other season his goals against Fulham and Blackpool would have been hot contenders for goal of the season for AFCB. We'll forgive him the slight misunderstanding for the disallowed goal with Junior Stanislas last season - when at home to Millwall - with a two-on-one break, and will certainly remember his tremendous form in League One when he came close in 2012-13 to beating Jermain Dofoe's record of consecutive goals in an AFCB shirt. That is Brett though, when needed he did his job and even if he got it wrong at times he'd be back for more attempts.

Now he might feel slightly aggrieved at not getting a chance to play in the Premier League, but he needs to play a full season, and rather than two or three games at AFCB he will probably get a good chance to make a major contribution to Ipswich's season. It is not often that you get a player who will infuriate you as much as make you smile, but Brett is more talented than a lot of fans have given him credit for. The main task for any striker is to score goals and Brett regularly hit the back of the net for the Cherries amassing 268 appearances and 105 goals in his two spells. In his second spell his goal prowess was particularly impressive at 46 from 95 appearances - virtually one in every two games.

I wish him and his family all the very best. He's been fantastic for AFCB and is the fourth highest goalscorer for the club. Not bad, not bad at all!

Thank you Brett!