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Manchester City FC

20 August 2026

Manchester City FC

20 August 2026

Here is a data-led look at Bournemouth before the opening match of the new Premier League season.

City welcome the Cherries on Sunday in a 14:00 (UK) kick-off as the 2026/27 league campaign begins.

Using Opta data, we take a closer look at the first of the 38 tests that await.

Bournemouth recorded the best league campaign in their history last season, collecting 57 points from 38 matches to finish sixth.

Their 38-game return consisted of 13 wins, 18 draws and seven defeats.

That secured a place in the Europa League for this season and, while the added fixtures may have an impact later in the campaign, they will not affect this opening game.

They were a side of strong runs, with an eight-match spell early in the season lifting them as high as second at one point, before an 11-game stretch without a win.

Even so, they did not lose a league match after 3 January and currently carry an 18-match unbeaten run.

Bournemouth are one of nine Premier League clubs who will start the season under a new manager.

Marco Rose faces the difficult job of succeeding Andoni Iraola after the Spaniard departed for Liverpool.

The German will oversee his first-ever Premier League match, though he brings significant experience from spells with Red Bull Salzburg in Austria and then Borussia Monchengladbach, Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig in Germany.

Because of his background in the Red Bull system, Rose is known for teams that press aggressively and play with high energy.

In that respect, there is expected to be a degree of continuity with the main tactical principles established by Iraola.

Bournemouth’s squad has remained notably settled so far this summer, with three senior arrivals and three departures.

Centre-back Antonio Silva has joined from Benfica, right-back Juanlu has arrived from Sevilla, and Alvaro Rodriguez has been brought in to compete with Evanilson for the central striker’s role.

That follows the departure of former City Academy player Enes Unal, who has returned to Getafe after a two-year spell disrupted by a series of injuries, while midfielder Hamed Traore has moved to Marseille.

The most significant outgoing is clearly defender Marcos Senesi, who has joined Spurs on a free transfer.

Under Iraola, Bournemouth operated almost exclusively in a 4-2-3-1 system.

That usually featured Djordje Petrovic in goal, behind a back four of Adam Smith, James Hill, Senesi and Adrien Truffert from right to left.

With Senesi no longer at the club, supporters can expect either Bafode Diakite or Antonio Silva to come into that position.

Alex Scott is the preferred option in the double pivot, with Ryan Christie, Tyler Adams and Lewis Cook all competing to partner him, although Christie is suspended for this match.

Junior Kroupi is one of their standout attacking players, operating close to Evanilson, but he will miss this game after suffering an injury in pre-season.

Amine Adli will also be unavailable, meaning Rayan, David Brooks, Marcus Tavernier, Justin Kluivert and Ben Gannon-Doak are all possible options to support Evanilson.

With 58 goals last season, Bournemouth were the fifth most productive attacking team in the division.

No side scored more goals from fast-break situations than the Cherries, who struck nine times in transition.

They are less effective in the air, however, with no team scoring fewer headed goals, and they also managed only five goals from corners.

They continued to attack right to the end of matches in 2025/26, scoring 16 times in the final 15 minutes.

With an average of 414 completed passes per game, they sat almost exactly in the middle of the table in possession terms.

Kroupi was their most clinical player last season with 13 goals, while our own Antoine Semenyo scored 10 before his January move north.

Defensively, Bournemouth were a little more vulnerable than their final league position may have suggested last season.

The 54 goals they conceded was better than only six other teams, while their xG against indicated they might have allowed even more.

Set-pieces were a particular weakness. Their 26 goals conceded from dead-ball situations was the highest total in the entire league.

Only two teams committed more fouls than their 457 and only two teams picked up more yellow cards than their 88, so a fully committed display can be expected throughout.

City have won all nine Premier League home matches against Bournemouth, with an aggregate score of 34-6.

That means City have scored 3.8 goals per game on average when hosting the Cherries, our best home scoring rate against any opponent.

Overall, the two sides have met 18 times in the Premier League, with Bournemouth winning only once and just one match ending in a draw.

However, the most recent meeting was that draw on the south coast in May, so City will be looking to return to winning ways.