Lofty ambition saw Bournemouth part ways with Gary O'Neil at the end of the 2022/23 season and Andoni Iraola is the man tasked with leading the Cherries up the Premier League table.
O'Neil worked a mini-miracle to keep the club up last season following their disastrous start under Scott Parker, and almost everybody was surprised to see the former midfielder get the boot. In Iraola, though, Bournemouth have a manager capable of steering them towards mid-table status.
The Spaniard's Rayo Vallecano side was regarded as one of the most aggressive and exciting in Spain, with Iraola's stellar coaching ensuring they punched well above their weight in La Liga. There's boom or bust potential with the Cherries in 2023/24, but this was a plunge the Bournemouth hierarchy believed they had to take.
Here's 90min's preview of Bournemouth's 2023/24 season.
Bournemouth's performance last five seasons
*Bournemouth played in the Championship during 2020/21 and 2021/22.
Summer transfers
Ins:
- Hamed Traore (MF) - Sassuolo - £21m
- Milos Kerkez (DF) - AZ - £15.5m
- Romain Faivre (MF) - Lyon - £12.8m
- Justin Kluivert (FW) - Roma - £9.5m
- Ionut Radu (GK) - Inter - loan
Outs:
- Jefferson Lerma (MF) - Crystal Palace - free
- Jordan Zemura (DF) - Udinese - free
- Jack Stacey (DF) - Norwich - free
- Ben Pearson (MF) - Stoke - undisclosed
- Siriki Dembele (FW) - Birmingham - undisclosed
- Christian Saydee (FW) - Portsmouth - undisclosed
- Romain Faivre (MF) - Lorient - loan
- Mark Travers (GK) - Stoke - loan
- Will Dennis (GK) - Kilmarnock - loan
- Junior Stanislas (MF) - released
Squad numbers
*Numbers subject to change before end of transfer window
*Justin Kluivert, Milos Kerkez and Ionut Radu haven't been assigned squad numbers at the time of writing.
Key players
Star player
Jefferson Lerma's arrival does leave Bournemouth somewhat short in midfield, and Philip Billing might take up a more conservative role in Iraola's 4-2-3-1.
The Dane was given the freedom to advance and join up with Dominic Solanke under O'Neil last season, and he led Bournemouth's scoring charts in the Premier League as a result. Billing bagged seven league goals, with his ability to ghost into the box unnoticed proving incredibly useful.
Physically blessed and technically impressive, Bournemouth need another stellar campaign out of their versatile midfielder who could play several roles in the Spaniard's high-octane system.
One to watch
Dango Ouattara's 19 Premier League appearances last season suggest he was an outlet O'Neil relied on during the second half of the campaign after Bournemouth signed him from Lorient in January.
Adept with both feet and comfortable on either wing, Iraola could have a lot of fun with the Burkinabe wide man. Ouatarra scored just one Premier League goal during his first few months at the club, but it was an excellent goal to win it at Tottenham, and the sequence was perhaps a teaser of what we can expect from the winger moving forward on the south coast.
Explosive, versatile, and blessed with an eye for goal, Ouattara could be in for a coming-of-age season.
2023/24 kits
Home kit
Away kit
Third kit
Premier League prediction
There's serious potential for Bournemouth under Iraola, although the Spaniard's spell could quite easy blow up in smoke given his high-risk ideology.
Some might question whether Iraola currently has the players to ensure his ideals manifest on the pitch in the Premier League, but he worked superbly with less at Rayo Vallecano and he might benefit from other coaches and teams perhaps not knowing what to expect early on in the season.
While their midfield is a concern, Bournemouth are poised to steer themselves away from the relegation dogfight under Iraola in 2023/24.
Bournemouth 2023/24 Premier League prediction - 14th
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This article was originally published on 90min as Bournemouth 2023/24 season preview: Key players, summer transfers, squad numbers & predictions.