Could Albanian left back be Harte's replacement?

Eddie Howe is going to have to find another left back to fit into the squad now that Ian Harte has been released. There are many aspiring British left backs that Bournemouth could seek out now that they have money to spend in the Premier League. Upcoming Championship stars include Tyrone Mings at Ipswich, Jake Bidwell at Brentford and Declan John at Cardiff, but what of Bournemouth's scouting overseas? 

The search to replace Ian Harte is on.

Eddie Howe was in Italy last week at Empoli FC and I was interested to see that on their books is a young 21-year-old called Elseid Hysaj who has been talked about as one of the best young players in Italy at the moment. He has now made more than 100 caps for the Serie A side and has amassed 11 caps for Albania. Priced at around £3m, he would be a valuable addition to the Cherries who need to push Charlie Daniels in the left back position.

The Empoli FC full back is cool under pressure when going forward and scores some great goals himself as you can see in this YouTube clip where he scores the second goal. A plus point for Elseid is that he can play at both right and left back and he is well known for his short passing which fits into AFCB's style of play. His contract at Empoli is said to run out in 2016.

Okay, Albanian Serie A players might be just a bit optimistic but at least the club has more ability to look further than just the home leagues now. Eddie Howe has long stated that he wants to buy British but the cost of some of the players he may want could force him to look abroad, and while language could be a problem for many foreign players coming to the club, there is no doubt that AFCB are looking for quality players in the top flight. Current favourite to come in at left back is probably Everton's Luke Garbutt but AFCB face competition from Swansea and Watford.

How much the club spends though is also being kept very quiet and while we saw AFCB make a £5 million pound bid last January for Demari Gray, anything over £3 million would be a record signing for the Cherries in the summer. There may still be some bargains about though. The Premier League release list comes out soon. Last season AFCB brought in Dan Gosling and Junior Stanislas on frees - watch this space! 

The Championship Run-In sees Norwich book their place in the Premier League.

Life at the top could be slightly Italian for the Cherries

I'd like to think that not much will change for the players and the coaching that Eddie Howe gives the team. Already though Eddie is looking to pick up new ideas and has been mixing with Maurizio Sarri with Empoli in Italy, which can't hurt and he might even be watching some players while he is out there. Empoli take on the giants of Juventas, Inter Milan and Napoli every week in Seire A so there could be very good advice at hand to know how AFCB can get points against the likes of Man Utd, Arsenal and Chelsea. They were only promoted to Serie A last season having been runners up in Serie B, but play entertaining football. I can't help but believe that pooling knowledge from top European coaches is something that more managers should do and any advantage that AFCB can take into the new season is going to be worth millions if the team can stay up.

AFCB will be looking to raise standards higher in the Premier League.

The direction of the play is one thing and it may be that taking on better teams does have major consequences for AFCB. If there is one aspect of the game that stands out for me in the Premier League compared to the Championship it is the quality of strikes from free kicks and the amount of goals from corners. The set-piece is something that the Cherries are going to have to get better at defending against and some Italian methods in that respect may well be what Eddie Howe is currently looking at. Hopefully, we'll hear very soon about whether Artur Boruc is to be the first line of defence in the team for next season. 

Life in the Premier League is no longer a distant dream, it is real and it is here. The job just got much harder for everyone at AFCB. Being prepared is what is now the priority and as well as the addition of some new players (the latest rumours centre on Kieran Trippier of Burnley and Everton youngster Luke Garbutt), the team has to be comfortable in knowing what it faces in the next few months. When the players come back to train they need to be on it from the moment they start training and attention to details is going to be vitally important. I know that AFCB could not have more capable people than Eddie Howe and Jason Tindall to lead the team in this exercise and while the Premier League may have arrived sooner than many of us expected everyone has to adapt to it fast now.

As fans we can enjoy the ride and pause to take it all in. It must be like a whirlwind for those on the inside at the club. The season ticket sales and the fixtures are just the start of it. New shirts, new advertisers and media pressures are going to stretch everyone, but the club is already showing how it wants to remain helpful and friendly to fans that have questions and only want the best for the club. There are, for example, some great questions from fans about season tickets and answers from from the club up on the official AFC Bournemouth website.

I do expect to see an even more professional AFCB though. The expectations on everyone to raise their game is higher and with the world looking on I just know that they will all make us very proud in the Premier League. UTCIAD!