They’ve lost two big names at the back, so does a season of regression await Bournemouth – or can they build on last year’s best-ever Premier League finish?
The Cherries are the subject of our latest 2025/26 Fantasy Premier League (FPL) team preview.
Top picks, Gameweek 1 line-up prediction, fixture assessment, defensive contributions (DC) magnets and more – it’s all covered in this team guide.
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BOURNEMOUTH: REASONS TO BE CHEERFUL
THE MANAGER
Bournemouth smashed their previous records for goals scored, wins and total points in 2024/25.
The manager played a huge part, as Andoni Iraola fine-tuned his side’s high-intensity approach, pushing them to a new level.
Indeed, the Cherries were only behind Brighton and Hove Albion for counterpressures in the opponents’ half last season:
Iraola is currently in the final 12 months of his contract with Bournemouth, and securing an extension is surely a top priority for club owner Bill Foley.
PROMISING UNDERLYING NUMBERS
Bournemouth generally performed well when playing the top sides in 2024/25, recording memorable victories over Arsenal (twice), Manchester City and Newcastle United.
The underlying numbers were very decent, too: fifth for expected goals (xG) and eighth for expected goals conceded (xGC).
In fact, according to Opta’s Expected Points Table, Iraola’s troops should have finished sixth.
BOURNEMOUTH: REASONS TO BE FEARFUL
LACK OF EFFICIENCY IN FRONT OF GOAL
