Bournemouth

Charlotte Coates
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Despite trailing twice at Craven Cottage, Bournemouth come away from the capital with a point but feeling as though they could have taken all three.

Andoni Iraola's side started the game brilliantly and on the front foot against a Fulham team without a defeat in their last six matches.

Antoine Semenyo and David Brooks peppered the goal of Bernd Leno but the German goalkeeper was equal to what they had in the first half.

After falling behind to Raul Jimenez's header against the run of play, the Cherries regrouped at the break and levelled through a super Evanilson finish from a tight angle - ending his run of seven goalless games.

Bournemouth's incredible run of seven games without loss has taken them up to sixth in the Premier League - just a point adrift of defending champions Manchester City in fifth.

Is landing a spot in Europe for next season realistic? At the rate the Cherries are going, yes it is but manager Iraola knows his side face struggles with injuries mounting.

He told BBC Match of the Day: "They don't give you anything for half of the season. We are starting to feel the injuries, we are quite thin on numbers."

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Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola to BBC Match of the Day: "We normally finish games strong, we value the subs and what they give us energy-wise. We had 13 outfield players for the first team. If anyone deserved to win today then it was more Bournemouth than Fulham.

"I thought we played very well in the first half but at least we could recover one point.

"We are starting to understand his [Evanilson] movements better and the ball from James Hill is a lovely ball. He had another chance but his touch is too heavy and Leno does well.

"Very positive, it has to be. But they don't give you anything for half of the season. We are starting to feel the injuries, we are quite thin of numbers."

Were you at the game or following from elsewhere?

Have your say on Fulham's performance

What did you make of Bournemouth's display?

Come back to this page on Monday to find a selection of your replies

There are six games in the Premier League on Sunday, and we will bring you every moment.

• Leicester v Man City (14:30)

• Crystal Palace v Southampton

• Everton v Nottingham Forest - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

• Fulham v Bournemouth

• Tottenham v Wolves

• West Ham v Liverpool (17:15) - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

All kick-off times 15:00 GMT unless stated

Follow all the action and reaction here

Chris Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League games this season, against a variety of guests.

This week, he takes on musician Emma-Jean Thackray, who is a Leeds fan.

Sutton's prediction: 2-1

What a result for Fulham last time out. Marco Silva's side only snatched their win over Chelsea right at the end at Stamford Bridge, but they fully deserved it.

Bournemouth are on a great run too, although they have cost me some predictions points by drawing their past two home games when I thought they would win.

So, who do I go for here? Both teams are on a run of six games without defeat, so it is a tough call.

The easiest thing to go for would be a draw, especially since Fulham have drawn their past three games at Craven Cottage, but I am going to be brave and choose a winner, and I am backing Silva's side.

I am a little surprised that Silva doesn't get linked with big jobs anymore when they become available.

Maybe that is because he was seen as under-achieving at Everton when he finished eighth in 2018-19. But if you look at what has happened to them since, when you look back, he was a success at Goodison Park.

Emma-Jean's prediction: 1-1

Fulham are doing well, and Bournemouth are flying. I feel like my crystal ball is telling me this will be a draw.

Read the full predictions and have your say here

Chris Wise
Final Score reporter

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When Bournemouth roared back from three goals down at half-time to beat Luton Town 4-3 back in March, we all knew that we had just witnessed one of the Premier League's greatest comebacks.

However, something far more significant had already happened that evening. This game had originally been played in December 2023, and I was there for that one too. It was the day Luton captain Tom Lockyer suffered a cardiac arrest on the Vitality Stadium pitch. For anyone who witnessed that, it's unfortunately going to be an awful memory that will never fade.

However, when the teams got back together in March, it was a celebration. A celebration of Tom's health and wellbeing. He came onto the pitch before the game to thank the medics that had saved his life, there was advice for fans around the stadium about cardiac health, while Bournemouth's supporters' group had raised money for Luton's fans to to help pay for their travel costs.

From what had been the darkest day three months before, there was so much light and love that night in March. And there are two clubs in Bournemouth and Luton who now have the strongest bond.

I still think about Tom and his young family a lot, and hope they have been able to cherish their Christmas together.

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Fulham beat Bournemouth 3-1 in the last league meeting between the sides in February – only once have they won consecutive league games against the Cherries, doing the double over them in the 1931-32 Third Division South.

Fulham have scored a league-high share 38% of their Premier League goals in the final 15 minutes of games this season (10 out of 26), while Bournemouth rank second for this (10 out of 27).

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We asked for your thoughts after Thursday's Premier League game between Bournemouth and Crystal Palace.

Here are some of your comments:

Bournemouth fans

Jonathan: Again, not making the better play in the game count will prove costly through the season. We were the better team, but failed to really make anything in the final third. We need to be more ruthless. Fair play to Palace, they defended well, but they will definitely be the happier of the two sides after that game.

Ben: I love our brand of football and our attacking intent, but we need to start converting our chances. I guess Santa didn't deliver goalscoring boots this Christmas! That being said, Kepa Arrizabalaga and the back line did a stunning job nullifying Palace.

Clive: Injuries are starting to take a toll. The suspension of Justin Kluivert for the next game will mean he will be fresh to play against Everton. We are lacking pace off the bench until the injured players return. Andoni Iraola has limited resources, but prefers to use a limited number of players. I cannot see us recalling those on loan, but we might need an additional pacey winger to bring and maintain competition.

John: Another good display from the team - we just need to get better at finishing. Also, I don't think it was a good choice of striker from the start.

Palace fans

Dave: Good away point. We were lucky though. On another day, it could have been 4-0 with the amount of chances Bournemouth missed.

Lee: Good point away from home but it shows where we've got to strengthen in the window. At least three players short. Need a striker, a number 10 and a left wing-back.

Robert: Palace lost their composure and couldn't settle on the ball. The passes were hurried and inaccurate and they lost most of the 50-50 tackles. All credit to Bournemouth for being more persistent and energetic. Eberechi Eze, in his current form, is a luxury Palace can't afford and Daichi Kamada is a bargain they should not have made.

Don: Ironic that Palace fans are keeping their faith in Oliver Glasner. A good point but one achieved through a solid defence while trying to play on the break - rather like the style Roy Hodgson was criticised for at the end.

Highlights and analysis from Boxing Day's eight Premier League fixtures.

If you missed Match of the Day, you can catch up now on BBC iPlayer.

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Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola to BBC Match of the Day: "I think we have to value the point. It's not what we wanted at the beginning. I think we did half of the job: we defended well, didn't concede, kept the clean sheet, but we missed a bit of the final touch at the end. We had a few good transitions where we lacked a bit of sharpness in the last pass, last control and we couldn't score the goal.

On whether that means needing more of the "efficiency" he has previously mentioned: "It's difficult to attack Palace, they have a back five, the chances you are going to have probably won't be super clear. I think we've had these kind of chances but we've missed the brilliance at the end and we couldn't win it."

On Bournemouth's unbeaten run: "Once you win away it probably looks better the point at home. Once you've beaten United and you look at the four games, everyone would have taken them. Now we need to prepare again against Fulham and it's going to be a nice game but difficult."

Adam Millington
BBC Sport journalist

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Bournemouth racked up 18 shots and 1.19 expected goals against Crystal Palace, but they only hit the target four times and failed to break the deadlock.

It was a frustrating afternoon for a Cherries side who are in the middle of a fine run of form, but not one which will linger long in the memory.

The visitors caused problems of their own, but they were easily dealt with as Bournemouth defended well and prevented Palace finding truly clear-cut opportunities.

Palace's back five proved hard to get through for Andoni Iraola's men and the full-time statistics do not tell the full story of how the game panned out.

While they did have many opportunities and really should have tested Dean Henderson on more occasions, not all were glaringly obvious misses and the chances they got were a sign of their good work in the build-up.

On the whole, it is a game which will be irritating for Iraola due to the fact there were ample chances to win it but one which is unlikely to result in much concern.

Image source, Getty Images

Bournemouth's tally of 29 points after 18 games is their best-ever top-flight return at this stage of a campaign.

Were you at the game or following from elsewhere?

Have your say on Bournemouth's performance

What did you make of Crystal Palace's display?

Come back to this page on Friday to find a selection of your replies

There are eight matches in the Premier League on Thursday, and we will bring you every moment.

• Manchester City v Everton (12:30)

• Bournemouth v Crystal Palace

• Chelsea v Fulham

• Newcastle v Aston Villa

• Nottingham Forest v Tottenham

• Southampton v West Ham

• Wolves v Manchester United (17:30)

• Liverpool v Leicester (20:00)

Kick-off time 15:00 GMT unless stated

Follow all the action and reaction here

Chris Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League games this season, against a variety of guests.

This week, he takes on Eats Everything, aka DJ and producer Daniel Pearce.

Sutton's prediction: 2-1

I am not going to overthink this one.

Until they lost to Arsenal twice last week, Crystal Palace were showing signs of improvement, but Bournemouth have been brilliant.

Andoni Iraola's side thoroughly deserved to beat Manchester United on Sunday. They always create loads of chances and, at the moment, they are taking them.

Eats Everything's prediction: 2-1

Bournemouth are absolutely on fire - as United found out on Sunday, unfortunately. I love Antoine Semenyo, who is an ex-Bristol City player and is absolute dynamite, but the whole team just look really solid and play amazing football.

Palace have started to kick on a bit now too, and Oliver Glasner is doing a good job there, but I'm definitely going with Bournemouth here.

Read the full predictions and have your say

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For me, wherever I played, I'd always see where the first game was, where the last game was, and where we were at Christmas.

There is such a big difference between being at home on Boxing Day versus being away because, depending on what your manager is like, if you've got an away game there is a chance you're training on Christmas Day.

Some of the toughest times I had was when we had away games on Boxing Day and we had to come in to train at four or five on Christmas. That's when everything is just starting at home and everyone is really enjoying themselves and you have to leave.

If you lose you are sat in the hotel having walked away from friends and family all for no points. It's not the best feeling and as a consequence you bring home some of that disappointment with you.

But, in reality, you just know it is the busiest time of the year. The floodlights are always on for the games, the conditions get that little bit tougher, you've got games it feels like every three or four days.

I think it's an exciting part of the season because you can gain real, significant momentum but ultimately it comes down to are you winning games.

I think the Christmas period itself can be tough if you have got family but in reality it always feels nicer when you get that win on Boxing Day. The atmosphere in the stadiums is a little bit different, the atmosphere among the players is a bit different.

You're very thankful to get the chance to do what you do, but if you end up losing on Boxing Day or around that spell it is rubbish because it almost feels like it was a waste of time with all the efforts you put in.

But, I get it. The fans love it, there is a lot of clamour around it. You lose track of days just like everyone else does after Christmas and before New Year but it is great to play in front of those types of crowds and it just does feel different playing during that week or two.

Nedum Onuoha was speaking to BBC Sport's Nat Hayward

Tom Jordan
Fan writer

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It is a wonderful time to be a Cherries fan - and 2024 has been a year with many moments to cherish.

In particular, Bournemouth's first top-flight win over the current Premier League champions was a special one - not least given it was our first point against them.

While we are fortunate enough to have witnessed some big scalps over our relatively short Premier League stint, Manchester City was one team that had always eluded us. The fixture was actually the most one-sided in the top flight, but 2024 was the year which changed all that.

The victory, courtesy of Antoine Semenyo and Evanilson, was not only impressive because of the result but also because of the manner of it.

Bournemouth thoroughly deserved it. They outclassed a City side full of world-class players, and Andoni Iraola won the battle of minds with one of the best in Pep Guardiola.

But I know what you are thinking: Manchester City are in a mini crisis and have only won one game in their past 12. And you would be correct.

But which side started their Premier League downfall? It was Bournemouth.

It was a statement to the rest of the league that simply 'surviving' was not the Cherries' only aim in 2024, instead we wanted to continue to flourish and progress in the top flight.

Having taken a big scalp in Arsenal a few games earlier, it was also a sign that the win was not just a 'flash in the pan'. Iraola's men mean business this season, regardless of the opposition.

Are Bournemouth one of the main reasons for City's drop-off? Maybe. But is this a reason why Cherries fans will be ending 2024 with big smiles on our faces? Definitely!

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

Jeff Hayward from the Back of the Net podcast this "more notice" should be taken of Bournemouth.

He joined the team on The Monday Night Club to discuss the Cherries' recent fine form and the "incredibly" brave style of play on show under Andoni Iraola.

Take a look at both clips, watch the show on iPlayer or listen on BBC Sounds.