Arsenal v Bournemouth – December 26h, 2019
GunnerN5 would like to take this opportunity to wish all Bergkampesque readers a very happy and extremely healthy 2020 and beyond.
Although the exact date of the club’s foundation is not known, there is proof that it was formed in the autumn of 1899 out of the remains of the older Boscombe St. John’s Institute F.C The club was originally known as Boscombe F.C. The first president was Mr. J. C. Nutt.
In their first season, 1899–1900, Boscombe F.C. competed in the Bournemouth and District Junior League. They also played in the Hants Junior Cup. During the first two seasons, they played on a football pitch in Castlemain Avenue, Pokesdown. From their third season, the team played on a pitch in King’s Park. In the 1905–06 season, Boscombe F.C. graduated to senior amateur football.
In 1910, the club was granted a long lease over some wasteland next to Kings Park as the club’s football ground by local businessman J.E. Cooper-Dean. With their own ground, named Dean Court after the benefactor, the club continued to thrive and dominated the local football scene. The same year the club signed its first professional player Baven Penton.
Around about this time, the club obtained their nickname “The Cherries,” with two foremost tales on how the club gained the nickname. First, because of the cherry-red striped shirts that the team played in and, perhaps less plausible, because Dean Court was built adjacent to the Cooper-Dean estate, which, it is believed may have encompassed numerous cherry orchards.
For the first time, during the 1913–14 season, the club competed in the FA Cup. The club’s progress, however, was halted in 1914 with the outbreak of World War I, and Boscombe F.C. returned to the Hampshire League.
In 1920, the Third Division of the Football League was formed, and Boscombe were promoted to the Southern League, finding moderate success.
The 2019–20 AFC Bournemouth season is the club’s fifth consecutive season in the top flight of English football and their 130th year in existence. The club is currently owned by Maxim Demin, a Russian multi-millionaire involved in the petrochemicals trading industry.
The club has spent the majority of their history bouncing between the third and fourth tiers of English football. Under manager Eddie Howe, they have risen through the pyramid; the 2015–16 season was their first ever in the top flight and they have remained there ever since.
Bournemouth’s stadium is the smallest in the Premier League; they play their home matches at Dean Court, which has a capacity of 11,329 and is the smallest stadium in the Premier League. The club’s badge has Bournemouth’s red and black stripes and also a footballer heading a ball.
This is only our fifth EPL away game against Bournemouth and we have a record of – W2, D1, L1, GF8, GA6.
| Arsenal v Bournemouth EPL Away Record | ||||||
| Date | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
| 07-Feb-16 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 03-Jan-17 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 14-Jan-18 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -1 | ||
| 25-Nov-18 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | ||
| 26-Dec-19 | 0 | |||||
| Total | 2 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 6 | 2 |
Bournemouth have a home record of W2, D3, L4, GF9, GA14.
| Manchester City | Lost 1-3 |
| Sheffield United | Drew 1-1 |
| West Ham | Drew 2-2 |
| Everton | Won 3-1 |
| Norwich | Drew 0-0 |
| Wolves | Lost 1-2 |
| Manchester United | Won 1-0 |
| Burnley | Lost 0-1 |
| Liverpool | Lost 0-3 |
This is the start of a new era at Arsenal Football Club, Mikel Arteta Amatriain is now our Manager and the expectations of the club and its supporters have been elevated. Mikel has an enormous challenge and we all wish him to start off this new adventure with an away win.
The next five games are going to be extremely difficult for the new manager and they will be a real test of his ability to galvanize his players into a cohesive force.
| Chelsea | H |
| Man United | H |
| Crystal Palace | A |
| Sheffield U | H |
| Chelsea | A |
No games can be considered as easy in today’s EPL but Bournemouth looks to be the easiest of the next six – I anticipate an Arsenal victory and a renewed optimism among the supporters.
GunnerN5
Bergkampesque 
Great preview, GN5. Apologies for not issuing sooner but I was away from home without my laptop yesterday. 😳
You had the Chelsea games mixed up, so I changed that. As a result, we are playing three home games in four after the Bournemouth game, and that should help us to build some momentum and get behind the team.
Happy New Arsenal!
Thanks again GN5 for the intro. TA for the platform.
I have been waiting for this day. Looking forward to the road ahead. The club, Mikel Arteta, and everyone he will lead– need just put one foot in front of the other. Without relent.
This match may be the only time I’ll judge results in a singular manner. As it’s Arteta’s first at the helm. After today? It’s about club, culture, and regeneration. The focus more on longer-term outcomes.
I’m re-energized. Excited for the possibilities.
I, we– have our Arsenal back!
Go Gunners!
jw1
Thank you Total, I hope you had a great Xmas.
Like many of us I feel a sense of renewed excitement at the start of the MA era, he certainly talks the right talk. We all realize that there’s more to it than the right words – but it’s clear that he has a meaningful vision that he wants to instill into the club.
It’s going to be interesting to see if he sticks with the youngsters.
I say 0-2 to the Arsenal.
Hi guys 🙂
We have to hope rather than expect a good result, so I am not going to do any predictions today. It will take time to get it right for Arteta, and I am happy to be philosophical today.
Leno, AMN, Saka, Sok, Luiz, Tor, Xhak, Nelson, Ozil, Auba, Laca
Very attacking team – PE is getting his wish. Hopefully we will play compact, hard to beat and take our chances. COYGs!!
Second game for Nelson, which is interesting.
Re: Nelson. He must be tearing it up in training TA.
Didn’t see it vs Everton– maybe today though.
jw1
I guess he fits tactically, as per Arteta’s system of football… Let’s see how he will be employed..
I think Nelson for Pepe makes sense particular for MA 1st match. Pepe style is high risk high reward Sanchezesque with a lot of ball turnovers. But unlike Sanchez doesn’t fight to recover lost balls. Likely to come in for one of the front 4 in the 2nd half irrespective of the state of the parties.
Game’s started. Very quick start and been action at both ends, albeit without end product.
Ozil with a good slide rule pass into Laca who stumbles with the ball at feet and let the chance go as he struggled to keep the ball in control for the killer shot.
Saka also crosses into the box but keeper gathers.
Laca should just shoot between the legs and hope for a favourable deflection, at the worst.
The home side goes one up. We have it all to do now,
As usual, you could smell that goal coming, as soon as the cross came in. In spite of being a goal down, I’d say we have shown some intensity and better coordination.
Let them keep doing what they are doing. I believe they’d be fine. Maybe early sub Pepe for Nelson.
Other than Nelson and Saka bungling opportunities for better crosses, we have shown the effort, won some good 50-50s and have the better quality. It’s a game where we needed to have our first team full backs available, but it’s what it is; we have to cope with the imbalance inherent in being short on right personnel.
Not sure we’ve had a shot on target and not been happy with Auba’s output from the wings. I expect one of Nelson, Auba and Laca to be taken off for Pepe. We need to be pegging them back and be aggressive in their area.
1-1, … at last
well-deserved
COYG put’em to the sword
Chelsea losing at home to S/pton 2-0 would have been a good time for us to get 3 points away at the Cherries, but it was not to be.
The London derby then.
I am not sure guys.. Saka and Nelson are not putting long balls into the box.
Overall we did well but we need plenty of work in the final third. Today we did well in other areas, but we were bad in the final third.
The players does not seem to want to challenge for the balls in the box but i see Ozil fighting before he came off for Willock, who should have done better to square the ball to someone else rather than him shooting.
Well, there was more possession in opponent territory and more energy. Baby steps.
(At work– only had a chance to watch about a half total.)
We might have won that one. Some balls that should have been more accurate into the box– were skied or long. Poor conditions. Inexperience. Lack of reps.
Take another step on Sunday.
jw1
Baby steps for sure. Just happy we didn’t turn that (Arteta’s first game) to a L.