Bournemouth

Nicola Pearson
BBC Sport journalist

As the dust settles on the 2024-25 Premier League season, we have been taking a look at some of the alternative ways the the table could have finished...

Passing in football has become an obsession.

The tiki-taka style of Barcelona has now become the basis of managerial philosophies across the leagues and lands of Europe and beyond.

The problem is, few teams have the ability to execute it at the level required to make it effective.

Pep Guardiola took it to another level when he was in charge of the La Liga giants and it has served his Manchester City side well since he took charge in 2016 having won 18 trophies in the following nine years.

And, if the Premier League season had come down to how well teams pass the ball, unsurprisingly the eight-time champions would have been celebrating a ninth title.

With nearly 90% accuracy, they rarely put a foot - or pass - wrong.

And yet, in reality, it did not translate to success on the pitch this year.

Whether it was teams finally finding the chinks in the passing-machine armour or the side's misplaced passes proving more costly than in previous seasons without key players, City could not take advantage of their dominance with the ball.

And for one of the most acute examples of ability with the ball not translating to on-the-pitch success, we only have to look at Southampton.

The Saints at one point looked set to break Derby County's record for the least amount of points in a Premier League campaign, and yet they were less than 1% behind actual league champions Liverpool when it came to passing accuracy.

While fans could have some appreciation for watching nice football, they might have appreciated some scrappy displays that resulted in hard-fought results and possible safety more.

In contrast, Crystal Palace had the least accurate passing of any team in the league.

And yet, Oliver Glasner's side ultimately finished 12th - just three points off a top-half finish - and won the FA Cup final against the club with the best passing ability of them all.

They are not the only team to have had successful seasons in their own right while being in the bottom six for passing accuracy.

Nottingham Forest were 19th in this table metric, but in reality were fighting for Champions League places.

Bournemouth and Brentford also battled for possible European spots into the final weeks of the season, and even Everton finished the campaign comfortably away from relegation that at one point they looked set to be in a battle to escape.

So what does this tell us? When it comes to winning football matches, passing the ball well is not the be-all and end-all.

*Table data from Opta

Image source, Getty Images

One Cherries fan has joined BBC Radio Solent to give his top five Bournemouth players of the 2024-25 season - and he thinks his number one choice may be "controversial".

Do you agree with his picks?

Listen to his selections here on BBC Sounds

Tom Jordan
Fan writer

Image source, Getty Images

I definitely predict a busy summer transfer window for Bournemouth.

It started early for the Cherries in regards to departures when giants Real Madrid activated Dean Huijsen's release clause. One mightily impressive season from the young centre-back was enough for Madrid to pay out a £50m fee, so does he now need replacing?

In Illia Zabarnyi and Marcos Senesi, Bournemouth have two reliable centre-back options, but with Chris Mepham set to depart, another young centre-half may well be required. I anticipate bids to be made for the promising Nantes defender Nathan Zeze, who has been heavily linked.

Another departure is anticipated imminently, with left-back Milos Kerkez expected to sign for Liverpool.

While Bournemouth did recruit in that position in January by signing Julio Soler, another option will almost certainly be needed. I'd therefore be tempted to see if Real Madrid would allow their back-up left-back Fran Garcia to come to the south coast, having previously worked with Andoni Iraola at Rayo Vallecano.

A major conundrum is in between the sticks for the Cherries...

Last season, Kepa Arrizabalaga was impressive, but he was only on a season-long loan from Chelsea. Meanwhile, Neto was out on loan as cover for Arsenal, Mark Travers had a good loan spell with Middlesbrough and hot prospect Alex Paulsen spent the season with Auckland.

It is difficult to know what route the club will take, but I fully expect them to try to secure the services of Kepa on a permanent basis.

I would imagine both Neto and Travers will leave, and in turn that may allow Alex Paulsen to return as the club's number two.

It could be a rollercoaster summer!

Find more from Tom Jordan at Back of the Net, external

BBC Sport pundit Nedum Onuoha has given us his insight and opinion every fortnight on your Premier League club throughout this season.

But this week, he's in the hotseat for your questions.

Maybe ask him who should be on your club's radar this summer, or where a rumoured target or new signing might fit into the team.

Perhaps see what he thinks about how successful a new recruit might be, who it is vital to keep, or what is needed to make next season a success.

Send in your questions here and we'll put a selection to him

Steve Sutcliffe
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Bournemouth have the lowest matchday revenue in the Premier League, with a 11,379 capacity at the Vitality Stadium.

Yet they have recruited shrewdly and the big-money sales of Dominic Solanke and Dean Huijsen during 2024-25 means they could easily part with £100m to bring in new signings.

Brentford are among the best run businesses in the league and their approach of "spotting players that other clubs have not considered, such as Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa, is likely to pay further dividends as they are attracting attention from clubs with big budgets", said football finance expert Kieran Maguire.

"The Bees have no PSR concerns and could spend up to £200m, but are unlikely to break the bank for the sake of it as this is not the way that owner Matthew Benham conducts affairs at the club."

Meanwhile, another club on the south coast, Brighton, are also in rude health heading into the next transfer window.

The Seagulls have earned £200m in profit over the previous two seasons and could repeat last summer's heavy spend of more than £200m if necessary.

However, chief executive Paul Barber has already indicated they will more likely return to their tried and tested model of bringing in relatively unheard of players from unfamiliar markets.

Brighton's biggest challenge is more likely to be keeping hold of the likes of Joao Pedro, Carlos Baleba and Kaoru Mitoma, who are all attracting admiring glances from clubs with bigger budgets.

Read more about the early transfer window and what each Premier League club can spend this summer

Image source, Getty Images

BBC Sport's chief football news reporter Simon Stone has been taking your questions.

Anonymous asked: With AFC Bournemouth having had such a good season we will obviously be losing a few players. What will really hurt is if we lose Iraola. Is there any gossip around him going anywhere? (The chatter about a move to Tottenham seems to have abated a bit!)

Simon answered: The latest I heard on this was that Iraola is keen to stay and continue the work he has been doing at the Vitality. I guess the problem is last season was really good - but for extended periods, it promised much more, and Bournemouth are in the cycle where after a campaign like they had, they are at risk of being picked off by bigger, richer clubs. Dean Huijsen has gone, everyone expects Milos Kerkez to go and no-one really knows where it will end.

The key, clearly, is for Bournemouth to spend the money wisely. And that is not totally down to Iraola.

Follow the Q&A and the rest of the day's football news here

As the dust settles on the 2024-25 Premier League season, we have been taking a look at some of the alternative ways the the table could have finished...

Many of us will have been there in school.

It was not always about being the best, but about being better. Not trying to beat the others' scores or times, but about beating your own.

In sport too, it is why personal bests exist. It is a way of measuring your own improvement against what has gone before - we can't all be Usain Bolt and Florence Griffith-Joyner.

So if the Premier League season was all about how you compared to the campaign before, who would have come out on top?

Well, there is one clear winner.

With 29 points more than they had in 2023-24, Nottingham Forest would have been lifting that trophy.

They may not have finished the season quite as they hoped having spent so much time in the Champions League spots, but having narrowly avoided relegation a year ago, this shows the sheer scale of the improvement this term.

Their nearest challenger on this basis would have been Brentford.

With 56 points, they were three points short of their best ever Premier League tally, but having flirted with relegation last time out, it made for a more enjoyable season this time around.

Brighton, Bournemouth and Fulham may have just missed out on European adventures in the real league, but they are also teams who can be happy with the improvements they are showing as now well-established top-flight sides.

And despite the chaotic nature of Chelsea since the new ownership came in, they too can look to steady progress.

At the other end of the scale (or table), it is a very different picture.

Many question whether the traditional 'big six' teams is still relevant, given how others have broken that mould in recent years.

But if the season was based on improvement, four of those six would have been at the bottom.

Tottenham dropped-off in the league nearly as much as Forest improved. Manchester City had a high bar to reach, but a torrid spell proved costly. Manchester United have set multiple unwanted club records, while Arsenal struggled to maintain a real challenge for the title.

They say beware the wounded tiger, and it is hard to see all these sides having the same difficulties next season, but they will not have it all their own way with those teams that are on the up.

*All data from Opta and only teams who were in the league in 2023-24

Image source, Getty Images

Milos Kerkez has dropped a small hint over his Bournemouth future by telling fans he doesn't "know what will happen" in the next week.

The full-back has been heavily linked with a move to Liverpool in recent weeks.

In an Instagram post, he told supporters: "38 games, 38 started, we finished the job and broke the record. Thanks to the fans and everyone for support. Thanks to the gaffer for trusting me to start all 38 games and special thanks to the one above for keeping me safe and healthy and of course nothing would be possible without my family.

"I don't know what will happen in the next week but Cherries family thank you!"

Liverpool are preparing to make a formal bid for Bournemouth's Hungary left-back Milos Kerkez, 21, who has already agreed to the move and is valued by the Cherries at more than £40m. (GiveMeSport), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Monday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

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We asked for you to tell us what you want Bournemouth to do in the summer transfer window.

Here are some of your comments:

James: We need to hold on to as many of the star players as possible. However, if any indicate a desire to leave, just get the deal done. We mustn't be awkward and run the risk of them running down their contracts and leaving for nothing in a year or two. Who comes in? I think we need a keeper (hopefully Kepa) and then spend money on replacing players in the positions we lose.

Lucas: With Huijsen and Kerkez going, I think we could do with replacements. Zeze from Nantes looks good, and personally I would go for Ait-Nouri from Wolves. Would also love Kepa on a permanent.

Bryn: Tavernier has to go as he is far too inconsistent. Bringing in a Christopher Nkunku or someone being overlooked at a bigger club could be shrewd business for the right fee. I don't see wages being an issue for us from now on.

Andy: Keep Andoni Iraola and sign him on a new contract. The rest will fall into place.

Daniel: Get rid of Daniel Jebbison.

Proctors: I would love to see Quentin Merlin playing for Bournemouth. He has shown a lot in Ligue 1 and would be a great Kerkez replacement.

Thank you for the feedback you submitted on the Premier League club pages.

Our aim is to contain all of the BBC's in-depth coverage of that team in one place, so it helpful to hear from you - you are who the pages are for after all.

We are going through all your responses and will take suggestions on board for next season.

As the dust settles on this Premier League campaign, we asked former England international Fara Williams for her underrated XI for the season.

She selected Ryan Christie of Bournemouth as part of her midfield.

In an exceptional season from Andoni Iraola's side, Christie has probably been the key man in how they play.

He is accomplished on the ball but absolutely vital off it. Pressing is such an important feature in Iraola's style of play and Christie is the main man in terms of initiating, dictating and controlling that high press.

He has also been very adaptable, and really adapted his game this year. He is the unsung hero that every good team needs. In what can be quite a chaotic and high-intensity team, he brings a level of control that is vital.

Christie doesn't score many goals which may be why he doesn't get the same headlines as the likes of Justin Kluivert and Antoine Semenyo, but he is such an important figure.

Christie made 29 appearances for Bournemouth this season, scoring two goals and assisting two more. He was named the Cherries player of the season and supporters' player of the season.

Fara Williams was speaking to BBC Sport's Nat Hayward

The transfer window opens on Sunday - albeit for 10 days initially, mainly so sides competing in the Club World Cup can get early business done - before reopening for the rest of the summer on 16 June.

Dean Huijsen has already confirmed his departure from Vitality Stadium, but are there certain players you are desperate for Bournemouth to sign, or an area of the squad that needs improving? Or maybe holding on to other key players is your biggest priority.

And what about sales - who needs to go?

So over to you... what names need bringing in and shipping out?

Let us know here

Chris Collinson
BBC Sport statistician

Crystal Palace wing-back Daniel Munoz ranked second in distance covered (242 miles) last season and he also made the most sprints in the Premier League with 907.

Bryan Mbeumo and Milos Kerkez also rank highly, just behind Fulham's American speedster Antonee Robinson.

Newcastle's Anthony Gordon completes the top five.

While Gordon ranked fifth for sprints overall across the season, he sprinted more often than any other player, averaging 29 sprints per 90 minutes.

What's in a name? Well if the name's Anthony (or Antonee) then it is sprinting, with Gordon, Elanga and Robinson all in the top five.

Munoz is here again, coming in at fourth, behind Chelsea's Nicolas Jackson.

Image source, Getty Images

The BBC's Ask Me Anything team have done all of the research ahead of the announcement detailing next season's Premier League matches.

The fixtures for the 2025-26 season will be released at 09:00 BST on Wednesday, 18 June 2025 and the release will include the weekly schedule of all 380 matches.

The season will begin with a single fixture played on Friday, 15 August 2025 and conclude on Sunday, 24 May 2026, when all matches will be played at 16:00 BST. There will be 33 weekend rounds of fixtures, plus five midweek rounds.

The exact date and time at which individual matches are played during each weekend will be determined at regular intervals throughout the season, based on TV selections made by broadcasters.

Read the full article here

Bournemouth full-back Milos Kerkez has already agreed to join Liverpool and there no concerns over personal terms for the 21-year-old Hungary international. (Fabrizio Romano), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Thursday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

Image source, Getty Images

Dean Huijsen says he has "made friends for life" at Bournemouth in a farewell interview before his £50m move to Real Madrid.

The 20-year-old joined the Cherries from Juventus last summer for a fee of £12.6m and has impressed in central defence as Andoni Iraola's side recorded their best top-flight points total.

"It is been a great year," he told AFCBTV., external "It is due to everyone at the club - the staff, the directors, coaches, everyone working in the background. We made it happen.

"Everyone at the end of their career will remember part of history at a club or something special like a record. I'll definitely remember that."

Huijsen was voted Bournemouth players' player of the season by his team-mates, who he also paid tribute to.

"The dressing room is great," he added. "We enjoy our time together and it is a great team.

"I have good memories to look back on and I have definitely made friends for life."

On working with Iraola, Hujsen added: "Everyone has seen how I've developed this season and I'm excited to learn more.

"He's a great trainer and I'm very grateful and very thankful to him."

As a final goodbye to the Bournemouth fans, he said: "Thank you for everything. I'll always cherish these moments we had together. I will always remember them and I hope that I made them happy."

Mark Mitchener
BBC Sport senior journalist

Image source, Getty Images

By just about any mathematical metric you choose, 2024-25 must go down as the Cherries' most successful season of all time, shattering a number of club records.

Most Premier League points (56, beating previous record of 48). Joint highest league position (ninth). Most PL wins (15). Fewest PL defeats (12). Most PL goals (58). Fewest PL goals conceded (46). Best PL goal difference (+12, a gargantuan improvement from the previous best of -12).

Fans travelling up and down the country have witnessed the most away wins in a Bournemouth top-flight season (seven), most away points (28), fewest away defeats (five, only bettered by Liverpool and Arsenal this season), most away goals scored (35, previous best 27) and fewest away goals conceded (30).

And that is just the stats.

See below for part two.

Mark Mitchener
BBC Sport senior journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Emotionally, the 2024-25 season has been a rollercoaster.

Having lost star striker Dominic Solanke to Tottenham mere days before the start of the season, few foresaw Andoni Iraola's side picking up even more points, and scoring more goals, than in the Spaniard's debut campaign in 2023-24.

The Cherries even unearthed their own galactico in teenage defender Dean Huijsen, rapidly elevated to the Spain national team before a £50m move to Real Madrid beckoned.

It was a season of outrageous late comebacks, befitting a team who scored more goals in stoppage time after the 90th minute (nine) than any other.

The gung-ho late smash-and-grab at Ipswich. Evanilson's 96th-minute equaliser at Villa Park with the last kick of the game, denying Villa two (retrospectively) priceless points. And the unbelievable heist at Goodison Park, trailing 2-0 going into the 87th minute and coming away with a 3-2 victory to surely win Bournemouth the Premier League's 'Most Improbable Comeback' award for the third successive year.

Dragons were slain. The previously unconquerable Manchester City were finally beaten as the sides met for the 21st time in league football. Arsenal were beheaded twice, both at Vitality Stadium and in a maiden victory at Emirates Stadium. Manchester United were routed 3-0 at Old Trafford for the second successive season.

Indeed, the Cherries were only beaten by more than the odd goal three times all season – two of which were to champions Liverpool.

Then there were the hat-tricks...

Read below for the final part

Mark Mitchener
BBC Sport senior journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Then there were the hat-tricks.

Makeshift striker Dango Ouattara starred in a 5-0 rout of Nottingham Forest, which ultimately improved the goal difference enough to pip Brentford to ninth place.

And Justin Kluivert hit two trebles on the road, with a historic hat-trick of penalties at Wolves, before gunning down Newcastle to score more league goals at St James' Park in one game than his father Patrick managed in an entire season on Tyneside.

In context, that 4-1 win at Newcastle on 18 January was the champagne moment of an unforgettable season. The Magpies went into that game on a run of nine successive wins, being talked about as title contenders, with Alexander Isak on a red-hot streak of 11 goals in his past eight league games.

Iraola could only name a patched-up XI with players out of position and a threadbare bench of development squad players, the six outfield subs boasting only four substitute league appearances for the Cherries between them. The omens were not good for the fans who had left their homes in the early hours to make the longest journey of the season for a Saturday lunchtime kick-off.

But those fans were treated to a breathtaking performance to live long in the memory. Isak did not get a kick. Even some Newcastle diehards I spoke to after the game hailed it as the best away performance they had seen at St James' Park in years.

Off the field, the Cherries have a new state-of-the-art training ground – and owner Bill Foley chose its opening ceremony to announce that a deal had been reached to buy back Vitality Stadium, which had been sold and leased back two decades earlier when the financial wolves were circling.

Two years ago, Foley promised European football within five years. While a top-seven place was tantalisingly out of reach in 2024-25, this Bournemouth team have made a habit of shattering glass ceilings - and they are not done just yet.

We asked you to select your Bournemouth player of the season from the four candidates chosen by our fan contributor.

And with the poll now closed, we can reveal the winner is... Ryan Christie!

Here's what Tom Jordan at Back of the Net, external said about him:

Christie is the man who makes Bournemouth tick - the unsung hero of the side, if you will.

As the key cog in the Cherries' aggressive press, it has been evident when Ryan has been out of the side. A machine for Andoni Iraola's men.

See the final poll breakdown

Image source, Getty Images

Chris Collinson
BBC Sport statistician

Newcastle's Bruno Guimaraes covered the most ground this season, running 261 miles (St James' Park to Wembley is 271 miles).

He retains the award after racking up 263 miles in the competition last season.

Josko Gvardiol, Daniel Munoz, Bryan Mbeumo and Milos Kerkez complete the top five for most distance covered across the Premier League season.

Taking time on the pitch into account (out of players that played over half the available minutes), Guimaraes was pipped by Newcastle team-mate in the list by team-mate Sandro Tonali who covered more ground per 90 minutes than the Brazilian…although Bruno still ran 7.2 miles per 90 minutes!

Tottenham's Dejan Kulusevski ran harder than any other player this season, covering 7.7 miles per 90 minutes on average.

West Ham midfielder Tomas Soucek ran an average of 7.5 miles per 90 minutes, while Manchester City's Bernardo Silva (7.3) and Brighton's Yasin Ayari complete the top five.