Bournemouth entertain Tottenham at the Vitality Stadium in an early lunchtime kick-off on Saturday in what promises to be an exciting Premier League clash.
After drawing 1-1 with West Ham in their season opener, the Cherries were beaten 3-1 by 10-man Liverpool at Anfield last weekend. Spurs, on the other hand, claimed a credible point in their 2-2 draw with Brentford in their first game of the season before producing a strong performance in the 2-0 home win over Manchester United last weekend.
Both teams enter this fixture off the back of contrasting results. With that being said, here are the key battles that could define the outcome of the game between Bournemouth and Tottenham.
#Philip Billing vs Pape Sarr
Philip Billing was arguably Bournemouth’s most impressive player after Antoine Semenyo in their 3-1 loss to Liverpool last weekend. The Dane is the beating heart of this Bournemouth side. When he plays well, the Cherries automatically look a threatening side.
To stop Billing from running the show in midfield, Tottenham will have to rely on Pape Sarr to be at his best at the Vitality Stadium. Sarr’s time under Antonio Conte at Spurs wasn’t notable in any scenario, but he has been given a new lease of life by new boss Ange Postecoglou. The Senegalese midfielder capped off a strong display against Man United with a goal at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium, earning high praise from his manager later on.
It will be an interesting midfield battle between Billing and Sarr and whoever comes on top should have a big say in their team’s fortunes.
#Antoine Semenyo vs Destiny Udogie
Ghana forward Antoine Semenyo scored his first goal of the season last weekend when he gave Bournemouth an early shock lead with a rasping shot in their 3-1 defeat to Liverpool. And following his performance against Liverpool, it was not surprising to see Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola full of praise.
Starting on the right wing in Iraola’s 4-2-3-1 system, Semenyo was a handful for the Liverpool defenders with his pace and directness in the first half. The goal at Anfield should have given the Ghanaian a lot of confidence and he will be looking to take the game to Spurs left-back Destiny Udogie on Saturday.
Udogie caught the eye with his attacking contribution during Tottenham’s 2-0 home win over Man United. As well as his creativity on the ball, the young Italian played a major role in helping Postecoglou’s side keep a clean sheet against United.
Due to Udogie’s tendency to get forward and make overlapping runs on the left flank, Semenyo will get spaces to exploit every time he gets on the ball. Thus, this has the makings of one of the game’s more decisive battles.
#Richarlison vs Bournemouth centre-backs
Spurs were excellent and great value for a win against Man United in their first home game of the season. Unfortunately, it proved to be another frustrating outing for Richarlison.
The Brazilian has been given chances to lead the Spurs attack following the departure of Harry Kane to Bayern Munich. He failed to impress against Brentford on the opening day and things didn’t massively go his way in the win over United. Yet, with a lack of options at Postecoglou’s disposal, Richarlison is expected to lead the line again on Saturday.
The 26-year-old will be raring to give the Bournemouth centre-backs a torrid time and grab his first goal of the season. Keeping Richarlison quiet will be a task for Bournemouth’s defence, which will be marshalled by centre-back duo Marcos Senesi and Illia Zabarnyi.
Senesi and Zabarnyi, along with the full-backs, were poor defensively against Liverpool. Having conceded three goals last time out, they will have to show more solidity and resilience when defending against a Richarlison-led Spurs attack.