Sheffield Wednesday are in the bottom three but it's Bournemouth's form that is dire

Bournemouth will need to find away to get back to winning games. It has been a shocking run of results in January that has put Bournemouth on the verge of falling out of the play-off places having been in an automatic promotion place in December. A change of face and voice may be a help on the training pitches as Graeme Jones' position has been taken up by Jonathan Woodgate.

AFCB desperately need a win - will it come tonight?

Sheffield Wednesday are just the sort of team likely to be a problem for the Cherries. They have already beaten Tindall's team at Hillsbrough back in November 1-0 and the odds of them doing the double should not be that large. The Owls have won three of their last five games losing just one, but their points have come from home matches. On the road they are suffering more than Bournemouth with one point from their last five games.

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Bournemouth in comparison have hit rock-bottom in their form. Even at home they have just picked up one point from their last two games. The goals have also been in short supply with just two goals in their last four league matches. Tindall can't afford to be afraid of making changes now. Bournemouth have been floundering. He has to pick a side that is going to work hard and generate far more chances than of late.

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The Disrupted Season (2019-20) completes the story of Eddie Howe's reign at AFC Bournemouth 

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It is likely that Ben Pearson will get a debut at some point during the game against Sheffield Wednesday, but Jack Wilshere may be thrown straight in at the start. I'd like to see him paired with Lewis Cook but Tindall may prefer a bit more height in the team, so Lerma will likely be kept in the side. I'm expecting Junior Stanislas to start having scored last game. It's perhaps time for David Brooks to rest for a game. Bournemouth need players that are hungry for a win. I still feel Surridge has been underused and yet I expect it will be just Solanke upfront with two wingers in support. Well, that was my feeling until last night when Shane Long was signed from Southampton on loan.

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What Tindall does at the back is also up for grabs now. I have a feeling that things will stay the same though as the back four in the last game. Steve Cook seems undroppable, but with Mepham and Carter-Vickers available, it is still likely to be Mepham that gets the nod to join the captain. I'd like to see Jack Stacey also start again on the right ahead of Adam Smith. On the left side it has to be Rico and Bournemouth need him to find his crossing form that was once so good.

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Bournemouth's Home Form
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Sheffield Wednesday's Away Form
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Possible AFCB lineup

AFCB Subs: Dennis, Smith, Carter-Vickers, Pearson,
Brooks, Riquelme, Billing, Surridge, Long

In other news, Nnamdi Ofoborh has joined Wycome Wanderers on loan for teh rest of the season. Jack Simpson has joined Rangers on a permanent deal, Josh King has completed his long goodbye by joining Everton for £5m and Shane Long has joined Bournemouth on loan until the summer from Southampton.

Rangers could step in for AFCB players

While Bournemouth await further interest in their players, Steven Gerrard has not hidden his desire to bring an Bournemouth defender and midfielder north of the border to Glasgow Rangers. The Glasgow Times reported that Gerrard thought he might be too late to scupper Jack Simpson's move to Cardiff City, while he admires Nnamdi Ofoborh, but thinks it might not be realistic to get him to Rangers after the interest from English clubs in the player.

Jack Simpson's future is still up for grabs.

It looks like Bournemouth's fringe players are going to be prime targets for clubs looking to swell their numbers. How many players are let go by Neill Blake is what nobody knows, but I think we can expect Jack Simpson and Nnamdi Ofoborh to be two players who are likely to move in this window. Simpson has already had a fee from Cardiff City accepted by AFCB and with Charlton Athletic and Rangers looking to secure Ofoborgh's services, Bournemouth could soon be whittling down their squad.

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The Disrupted Season (2019-20) completes the story of Eddie Howe's reign at AFC Bournemouth 

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That might not be a bad thing if players are not getting games and it is leading to unrest in the dressing room. But getting a fair price is perhaps what AFCB need to be most concerned about. The players that are being targeted are very young and that may well concern the club as if they sell a few of their under 25-year-olds it does start to push up the average age of the group again which is something AFCB worked hard to get down in the last couple of seasons.

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Of course, we could see Tindall being given funds to go and get replacements. Somehow though I doubt there is much desire for the club to start spending at the moment with the possibility that it might not get in the automatic promotion places, and it could be gearing up for another year in the Championship. If that happens, AFCB may have to shed many more high-earners this summer. My worry is that by selling the young players now and keeping hold of the more experienced players, it will be the players that have been sold this January that AFCB really need in 2021-2 if they don't get promoted. We can be positive and hope for promotion, but when AFCB want to bring in more young players, we can expect selling clubs to ask high prices knowing AFCB's recent past.

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Previous post on Cherry Chimes - AFCB - simply 'not good enough'

Why have AFCB agreed price for home-grown defender to join Cardiff City?

Bournemouth have reportedly agreed that Jack Simpson can join Cardiff City for the knockdown price of £0.75m, according to SkySports. While Middlesbrough, Stoke City and Derby were checking the 24-year-old for a loan move, Cardiff seem to have jumped ahead by looking to buy the defender outright. Simpson's contract was due to end this summer.

Jack Simpson doesn't look part of AFCB's plans going forward.

Simpson has made six appearances in this current campaign for AFCB and his place was under pressure from the return to fitness of Cameron Carter-Vickers and well as the possible return soon of Chris Mepham. Looking ahead there didn't seem to be much opportunity for Simpson if these two players were going to be ahead of him, even if Bournemouth played three at the back.

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Simpson's form was called into question at times with recent defeats and while he was dropped after the 1-1 draw with Millwall, Bournemouth's form hasn't improved. The decision to sell Simpson may be more about the club looking to bring income in than a desire to let the young home-grown defender go to a Championship rival.

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If Bournemouth don't get promoted this season it might seem a strange decision to have parted with such a defender who could be a central figure in a Championship campaign going forward. The salary that Simpson was on is unlikely to be equivalent to many of the other more established players at AFCB, so there won't be a great saving there for the club.

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It does point towards Bournemouth looking to keep hold of the other defenders they have which might be good news for senior players like Steve Cook and Adam Smith who have been at the club a long time. Academy players may also be close to making the first team come the summer. Anyway, it looks like Jack Simpson only has to agree terms with Cardiff to complete the deal if SKySports has the details right.

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Previous post on Cherry Chimes - 10-man Bournemouth come a cropper against Luton

Millwall came straight down the middle

When a golfer says 'it went straight down the middle', you don't seem to be that concerned with what was no doubt a fine shot. But when a football team concedes a goal because of a ball that went straight down the middle, alarm bells start to ring!

Steve Cook can't stop everything on his own.

Such was the feeling when Millwall scored their equaliser against Bournemouth the other night. It was a free kick that Bournemouth really could have dealt better with and even Jason Tindall had to admit that Millwall's goal wasn't good enough. Lloyd Kelly was well out jumped and there was no cover behind him from Jack Simpson or Steve Cook, with runners getting free of their markers for Matt Smith to score. Solanke ended up the closest to Smith, but he couldn't get the right side of him.

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The warnings signs were there in the first half when Woods fed Jed Wallace, who burst through the middle of the defence, skipping over Simpson's lunge and making his way through to take on Begovic. If he had decided to take the ball around the right side of Asmir Begovic he would have scored. As it was, Asmir stood up as best he could and managed to block the shot with his legs.

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I have to wonder why the defence is making mistakes? Set-pieces are something that can be practised and while at this stage it is not so important of the odd point is dropped, the team has to be better now. There were several free kicks that saw Begovic have to make a save low down and Lerma cleared me off the line while Zahore hit the post. The walls that Bournemouth put up might as well not be there.

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The Disrupted Season (2019-20) completes the story of Eddie Howe's reign at AFC Bournemouth 

- it's available now for £11.49 as a paperback - visit Amazon to order

It may be that Tindall decides that he must have an out-and-out centre-back next to Steve Cook and this latest episode could have opened the door for Carmeron Carter-Vickers to come in. He has done the training and we know he can play at this level, so if the trio of Kelly, Simpson and Cook is not working well enough, perhaps Tindall will be bold enough to make the change in the next match against Luton.

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In other news, the Daily Mail reports that Jack Wilshere is expected to be offered a contract at AFCB.

Previous post on Cherry Chimes - Millwall stop Bournemouth from going second

AFCB may well have trouble holding on to their captain

The Sun is suggesting that West Ham are after Bournemouth defender Steve Cook as well as Josh King. Steve Cook has been a central pillar at Bournemouth since the League One days, so it would be strange not to see him in a Bournemouth shirt, but would his sale leave a big whole?

Steve Cook is now in demand

I think it would be a major loss because with Steve Cook you don't just have a defender but a captain and a player that others look up to. Having let Simon Francis go and with the sale of Nathan Aké, it has meant that Bournemouth have been shedding defenders with lots of experience. Losing another such defender may leave Bournemouth a bit light at the back for stature and leadership. But in other ways, it is time that Jack Simpson was more involved in the team, and with Chris Mepham and Lloyd Kelly, Bournemouth would be left with a very young group of centre-halves.

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The Disrupted Season (2019-20) completes the story of Eddie Howe's reign at AFC Bournemouth 
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Jason Tindall may well have to weigh up whether it is good to have a fresh start. If Steve Cook does go, then many of the defenders that were criticised for not doing well enough in the Premier League will have left the club. With Adam Smith and Diego Rico also possible targets for Premier League clubs, Bournemouth's backline could be very depleted come the end of 16 October.

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It will put much more importance on the performance and leadership of Chris Mepham who found it hard going at Wembley the other night. He and Lloyd Kelly would most likely be the centre-back pairing that Jason Tindall would turn to if Steve Cook does depart. A new partnership may work well, but there will be some uncertainty with how Bournemouth will do without Steve Cook. We have perhaps become too used to seeing the same faces and we know their game inside out. 

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It does seem strange though that players that were not good enough for the Premier League are being snapped up to play in the top flight again. While Tyrone Mings found that a club move did his game the world of good, perhaps Steve Cook will also find another level to his game if he does move.

Previous post on Cherry Chimes - An extract from the Disrupted Season: Not even VAR could stand in AFCB's way

Bournemouth defender is ready to step in for Norwich City game

The match against Man City was good for several reasons. Bournemouth might not have won the game but they played with confidence and had to defend well for long periods. It was good to see the team tested and the difficult part was to see Lloyd Kelly going off injured with a tight hamstring. That injury might not recover in time for the game against Norwich City, but Bournemouth has a potential deputy who more than deserves his chance to get a few starts in the first team.

Jack Simpson is ready to play a bigger role for AFCB

Jack Simpson played the 90 minutes against Man City and he stood up well against Riyad Mahrez and passed the test with flying colours for me. Of all Bournemouths defenders, I'd say that Simpson has been the most patient. He has never had a steady run of games for Bournemouth and has always had more experienced defenders ahead of him in the line-ups. He has had to come on in-game like he did against Liverpool last season when he hadn't had time to hardly warm up and yet needed to hit the ground running. Things have been against him in that kind of respect and I hope Jason Tindall tells him well in advance if he is to come in for Lloyd Kelly this weekend.

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The Disrupted Season (2019-20) completes the story of Eddie Howe's reign at AFC Bournemouth 

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Now Simpson has had time to see how the likes of Nathan Aké and Steve Cook have played and he is more than good enough to play in the Championship. If he is selected Bournemouth can retain their three at the back formation which has proved successful under Jason Tndall, and it won't affect the team that greatly with Simpson having played in midweek.

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I'd like to see Jack give Tindall something to think about. We have players like Philip Billing who are tall but don't supply any headed goals and we know that Jack is very good at heading from corners and getting in front of his man. Now is the time for Jack to grab his opportunity and defend well and see if he can be given the chance to go up for a few set-plays. JT has brought a few academy players into the squad, but it is also time for him to let players like Simpson be given the chance to play more than the odd Carabao Cup game. He has served his apprenticeship and could well do as well as some of the more experienced defenders if he could play a few games in a row.

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Previous post on Cherry Chimes - Bournemouth bow out to Man City 2-1 in Carabao Cup

Should Jack Simpson look for a new club?

The central defence position has been a real problem this season for AFCB. It is no surprise that Jack Simpson managed to get time on the pitch against Liverpool away with the injury to Steve Cook and Simon Francis and Chris Mepham already sidelines. But what should Jack Simpson expect these days in the way of opportunities at AFCB. Is he better than a stand in or could he be playing more games elsewhere?

Simpson is on the edge of the first team, but is that enough?

When I look at Jack Simpson, 23, I think of what happened to Baily Cargill. Baily was going to be the next best thing at the back at the Cherries and was in the England U20 squad but after a loan spell in Scotland he ended up at Milton Keynes. The route of a player back to the Premier League can be tortuous at times, and Jack will have to weigh up if he is best to stay around players who are at that leve,l or whether to drop down a level or two to ensure he gets more football.

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Personally, I think Simpson has what is required to be a top defender. He plays very calmly and looks to play the simple ball while he is a great threat at corners. Unfortunately, he has Nathan Aké and Steve Cook ahead of him and even Chris Mephan and Simon Francis will be higher in the pecking order. Rather like Tyrone Mings, Simpson may have to consider what is best for his future rather soon.

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While Bournemouth fans love to see home-grown players coming through, I don't think enough pressure is put in clubs to make it happen. Many of the young players do make it at other clubs, but the genuine test of how good a football club is from bottom to top is whether they can get players going through from their academy to the first team. AFCB are still very much behind the curve in this respect in my opinion.

Previous post on Cherry Chimes - Is it good for players to interact directly with players on Twitter?

Steve Cook loss is crippling for AFCB

There was only one turning point in the game with Liverpool for Eddie Howe. It was the moment early in the first half when Steve Cook pulled up after trying to stop Firminho in Bournemouth's box. The injury was immediate and Steve Cook could do nothing about it, but from being a goal up and looking strong, Bournemouth's insecurities came back to haunt them and Liverpool took full advantage.

Steve Cook has to sit a few games out.

The pairing of Steve Cook and Nathan Aké has been Eddie Howe's pillar at the back, but he hasn't had the chance to play them as often as he'd like. With Chris Mepham also out for probably another month, and Simon Francis having a knee problem, Bournemouth really need Jack Simpson to fill the void. Jack made the mistake to give Liverpool their first goal, but he he equally made a great goal line clearance a few minutes later. He can step up and will need to in Bournemouth's next game and it is his time.

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While Steve Cook will be a spectator along with Simon Francis for the Palace game, they can still be positive around the team and tell them what it would mean for them to see the lads win the games. It is a case of passing the baton on and if Bournemouth are going to be a club that brings players through and succeed, they need players to come in and make a difference.

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Steve Cook will be a big miss. He has a defiant character and warrior spirit that make him well prepared for the battles Bournemouth face in the run-in. But now it's up to others and Bournemouth can't allow themselves to feel negative about not having him on the pitch. They can only worry about the variables they can control and if that means making Jack Simpson play like he is Virgil van Dyke next game, then that is what the need to concentrate on.

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Chimes to Camera: AFCB 2 v 2 Chelsea
Previous post on Cherry Chimes - "We're killing ourselves," says Adam Smith

"We're killing ourselves," says Adam Smith

Adam Smith gave a very open and candid interview on AFCB TV following the defeat at Liverpool. It would be easy for him to say we were unlucky and were simply beaten by a better side, but he was honest in admitting that Bournemouth made mistakes and that is ultimately what cost them the game.

Mistakes are proving very costly at this point in the season.

I think it is important for players to admit when they haven't got things totally right. The disappointment can spur them on to do better next time and if they don't see that they made mistakes they are only cheating themselves. Once Bournemouth recognise that they have made mistakes in situations they can work on things to ensure they make the right decisions next time.

The errors that Jack Simpson and Lewis Cook made for the Liverpool goals were quick moments when things just got away from the players. It is the concentration that is the issue. If there was a training mechanism that kept players focussed and in control of their thoughts for 90 plus minutes, all teams would be employing that technology. But players are human and will make mistakes. Some times players get away with it, but against a team like Liverpool mistakes are punished.

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Individual errors are part of the game and it is just that Bournemouth's players are making more of them than many other teams, and they are doing it now at the time in the season when they can least afford to make them. It's been a characteristic of this season and several others for Bournemouth, and it is the level at which they are playing. The players so want to do the right things but are finding it hard to be decisive at times.

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The pressure is only going to be turned up in the next few games, so it is important that players get their heads around how they can best cope with the ball at their feet, and see it as a good thing that they have possession, and that they are in control when they have the ball.

Previous post on Cherry Chimes - A strong performance at Anfield but no points

Bournemouth can't afford late turn ups in games

In the first few minutes against Arsenal, I was confident that Bournemouth were going to get stuck right in. There was some good chasing and the high press was working. But then Arsenal got hold of the ball and Bournemouth went missing for a good half an hour.

The Cherries need ti untie their legs for the start of their next game.

I am not sure why this sort of thing happens to professional footballers. The players set out with a game plan and you'd hope they would stick to it near enough. But the tempo that Arsenal played at gave the Cherries problems. They soon managed to get more time to spread play and really stretch AFCB on the wings. It was quite annoying to watch because once Arsenal had found that the pace of Saka was hurting Bournemouth they kept finding him with neither Adam Smith or Simon Francis really getting across to the winger and Harry Wilson too high up the pitch.

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Eddie Howe might well have noticed the problem but nothing was really sorted out until half-time. It was then that there seemed to be a better match up and Bournemouth started to play their football in short spells. You wonder how much the players need to read the situation when they can see the team is getting pulled about all over the place.

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There is no doubt that Howe was confused about the way the team had fallen back in the first half. The early goal was surely part of the problem, but at 0-2 down, when the game could have got out of hand, Bournemouth started to dig in. I think that is encouraging for the games coming up. The team doesn't feel that a scoreline like 0-2 is unrecoverable and had Simpson got his header on target, Bournemouth could have got at least a draw even without Lewis Cook's late chance.

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I do expect AFCB to come out of the traps better though against Aston Villa. The Cherries need to put them on the back foot.

Cherry Chimes Previous post - Simpson too good for the bench

Simpson too good to be on the bench

We may be about to lose the services of Jack Simpson, at least for a few months if the Championship sides of Middlesbrough, Stoke or Derby get their man. A loan deal for Simpson would make sense for Jack Simspon's development, but it would be a pity if he makes a clean break with Bournemouth.

Jack Simpson is more than ready to play more minutes, but probably not at AFCB

Fans always like to see local players come through the system and as soon as we have one at Bournemouth, they don't tend to stay around long. But Jack has served his apprenticeship at Bournemouth and should be getting regular games. Even with the amount of injuries that the cherries have been getting, Jack hasn't found it easy to get in the team.

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I thought Jack as the man of the match against Arsenal in the FA Cup and if he had knocked in his header, we could have still been lining up for a replay. A relegation scrap might not be the environment that Jack Simpson would benefit from, but a promotion push could get his game in the right place. So I can see the benefits of going to a good Championship side, but none of the mentioned clubs are likely to get in the promotion scene. So perhaps, just playing games is something Jack would settle for.

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It would leave Bournemouth a little short at centre-back in terms of cover. Simon Francis is going to be the main back up if Aké and Steve Cook have problems, but then there wouldn't be much other cover with Chris Mepham out for the rest of the season. Eddie Howe might be keener on keeping Jack around but having him sit on the bench for the next few months isn't doing anyone any favours. Perhaps Eddie can put in a recall clause in a contract in case he loses a couple of centre-backs to injury.

Previous post on Cherry Chimes: No signings for AFCB could be a positive

Now we'll see the true value of Aké

Losing Nathan Aké for the Christmas period is just about the last thing AFCB needed. He has been the rock that the defence has been built upon and without his experience, Bournemouth will just have to make do. At the weekend Jack Simpson came in to plug the gap, but Eddie may try something else for the match away at Chelsea.

How do you replace Nathan Aké?

Eddie Howe will be reflecting on the third goal that Chelsea scored and Jack Simpson's misdirected pass that went to Keita, before Salah received a pass from Keita to score Liverpool's third goal. Was Jack Simply unlucky? Could he have made a safe pass and is he still best placed to play next to Chris Mepham?

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The other straight choice Eddie has is to move Simon Francis over to centre-back. This 
would make more sense as Francis is now a better player at centre-back than at right-back and Jack Stacey is perfectly capable of tying down the right-back slot. Of course, Howe may decide it is better to even go with three at the back just to keep another defender on the bench. All of a sudden though, Bournemouth are not blessed with lots of centre-halves and players like Charlie Daniels who could slip in and do such a job just aren't available.

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Chris Mepham is also in the spotlight having misjudged the flight of the ball for Liverpool's first goal. Great centre-halves are invaluable and the loss of Nathan Aké is going to be seen in the coming games. Bournemouth really are down to the bare bones and Chris Mepham and Simon Francis have not played a game together as a centre-back pairing from my memory.

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Eddie has to work with what he has. The shape of the defence will be the first thing Howe has to get right against Chelsea. It's what the team has to work on this week as a priority, then work needs to be done on working out how Bournemouth can have a threat up front. The options are limited, but we do know Nathan Aké will certainly be missed at the back.

Meanwhile, SkySports reports that Chelsea have a £40m but-back clause in Aké's contract and want to exercise it this January.

150 Premier League appearance up for Steve Cook

Captain Cook has done a great job in his last couple of games. Steve racked up his 150th appearance in the Premier League last Saturday and was making all the clearances and challenges to ensure Ramsdale wasn't give too much of a hard work out.

The calls for Steve Cook to get an England call up keep growing.

The captaincy surely does a lot for Cook's game. He really wears his armband with price and doesn't want the team to put in a poor performance. That means starting with his own game and while he has been back and fully fit, it is hard to see how Chris Mepham or Simon Francis will get near to the starting 11.

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The partnership with Nathan Aké is fully developed now. There is a real understanding between them and they seem much more focused on getting clean sheets. It is the small details that count and that make the difference and the communication from Cook is what I like to see. He was checking with Aaron Ramsdale and Nathan Aké regularly about what he wanted and the organisation of setting the offside line was good all game with Cook in control of it.

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The defensive side of Bournemouth's game has probably never been stronger. Three clean sheets in a row might well be a record for the club in the Premier League. Certainly, the back four look solid and it is not often we have been able to say that.

Players like Steve Cook are now gaining an enormous amount of experience with the time they have under their belt in the Premier League. But it's the players like Jack Simpson and Chris Mepham that need to be talking and learning from the experiences Cook has so that when they get to come into the team they are a bit more knowledgeable of things to watch out for.

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