Bournemouth boss fires 'uncomfortable' warning to Newcastle United ahead of weekend clash
The Cherries boss has looked forward to facing Newcastle in his side’s first home game of the Premier League season.
Bournemouth head coach Andoni Iraola has warned his players of the challenge they will face when Newcastle United visit the Vitality Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
The Cherries kicked off their Premier League season with a 1-1 draw at Nottingham Forest on Saturday after a goal from former Magpies striker Chris Wood was cancelled out by a late equaliser from Cherries forward Antoine Semenyo. The draw ensured Iraola’s side carried on some of the momentum built up by a promising first year under the former Rayo Vallecano boss after he led his side to a mid-table finish last season.
Newcastle’s own season kicked off in challenging circumstances as the Magpies were forced to battle to a 1-0 home win against Southampton after playing with ten men for over an hour following a controversial red card shown to defender Fabian Schar. However, Cherries boss Iraola believes United’s intensity will mean his side will face ‘very high demands’ on Sunday afternoon - but also stressed his players won’t make life easy for Eddie Howe’s men.
He said: “We have to prepare very well because the demands of playing against Newcastle United will be very high. They have won (against Southampton) playing with 10 players. They are a team that defends very well, attacks very fast, has individual players who can make the difference. We will have to be at our very best if we want to have some success against them. We will try to do it, because if we are at our level, I don’t think we are an easy team for them as well.”
Iraola could hand a debut to club record signing Evanilson on Sunday after completing a reported £40.3m deal for the Porto striker last week. The Brazilian frontman was said to have been monitored by Newcastle over the last 12 months after impressing for the Portuguese giants throughout that time - but he is line to face the Magpies on his first appaerance for his new club.
After completing the signing, Bournemouth chief executive Neill Blake told the club website: “We are delighted to bring someone with an immense pedigree to AFC Bournemouth. Evanilson is a hugely sought-after striker and for us to bring him to the club in a record-breaking deal shows our ambition and intent.
“Having scored 25 goals last season, including goals in the Champions League, we feel that his experience and ability despite only being 24 will help us to match our ambitions moving forward. It’s well known that we were keen on bringing a striker to the football club and for us to complete this deal so quickly is a testament to our recruitment team.”