Bournemouth fell to a 3-0 defeat at Anfield in their last Premier League fixture and on Wednesday, the Cherries are due to host Manchester United at the Vitality Stadium. Eddie Howe’s men will definitely try to finish in the top-half of the league standings and in order to do so, they must try to bag point(s) against Jose Mourinho’s entourage.
Bournemouth Team News
Bournemouth have no new injury concerns to worry about. While Junior Stanislas has been ruled out for the rest of the season owing to his knee injury, Adam Smith is also sidelined due to a similar ailment. Meanwhile, Tyrone Mings is yet to be 100% fit and might miss the upcoming fixture.
Here is how we expect Howe to roll out his starting line-up against Manchester United.
Goalkeeper
Asmir Begovic hasn’t managed to bag a clean sheet for quite some time now and he must be looking to have a strong finish to the ongoing campaign. He could have hardly done anything about the three goals that Jurgen Klopp’s men scored past him and is expected to be stationed under the bar yet again.
Defence
Nathan Ake and Steve Cook are likely to operate as the central defensive pair against the Red Devils. While Ake had a commendable outing against Liverpool, Cook has plenty of experience under his belt and is strong enough to deal with the attacking endeavours of Manchester United.
Charlie Daniels is expected to take up the left-back role but there is no denying that he has to increase his productivity in the coming games. Meanwhile, Simon Francis is likely to get the green light from Howe to start as the right-back.
Midfield
Dan Gosling and Lewis Cook are expected to be stationed in the central midfield. Gosling has established himself as one of the most important players under the tutelage of Howe and has cemented his place in the starting XI. Cook will be keen to better his credentials after his recent dip in form.
With Stanislas out for the rest of the reason, Bournemouth are expected to rely heavily on Marc Pugh. He is expected to be pencilled on the left side of the midfield whereas, from the right, we anticipate that Ryan Fraser will start to showcase his attacking prowess.
Attack
Callum Wilson might replace Jermain Defoe up front in the clash against Mourinho’s men. Defoe struggled against Liverpool and Howe might go for a change in the striking department. To aid the striker, we expect to see Joshua King operating from the central attacking midfield slot.
