The boss discussed Erling Haaland, Bournemouth's form, meeting with Bill Foley and gave a team news update.
Read every word from the broadcast section of Iraola's press conference here.
**Mark McAdam (Sky Sports News): Second in the Premier League. Phenomenal start to the season. Everyone's still talking about Bournemouth and yet again, the unbeaten run continues. It's now into eight games, the longest in the Premier League. I know I say this question all the time. How are you doing it? How are you proving everyone wrong? How are you continually putting in these performances? Because the footballing world wants to know.**
Andoni Iraola: We are being competitive. We are not winning easy games. All the games we've played, they've been quite, quite level. Probably the other day, it's a 2-0. It's not a great win, but it's a good win. But we are competing really well. I think we are being quite effective, efficient. But now the challenge is even bigger. We are facing one of the most difficult games you can play anywhere in the world of football. And we have to raise our level if we want to have any chance to take something from the Etihad. We have to raise our level.
**MM: And the victory against Nottingham Forest came in front of the owner, Bill Foley, who travelled over from America for a few days to watch the team be around the club. Did you get the opportunity to sit down and have a chat with him?**
AI: Yes, we had lunch at some of the trainings, because he came to see a lot of our trainings and now we have here space to be together and we were chatting. Yes, like talking about a lot of different things. Not specifically just the contract that you will ask me or whatever, about a lot of things.
**MM: How did those contract talks go?**
AI: No, we didn't have, like, if you want like a proper meeting in an office with. No, we talk every day. We talk with Simon, with Tiago, with Bill, even via message. So we know each other and we will have time to talk whenever we decide.
**MM: The fact that Bill came over to see everyone watch the game, talk about the future, obviously probably tell you how influential and important you are to the project moving forward, does that make you want to commit to the club?**
AI: Bill comes here because I think he's enjoying this experience. I think he's learning more about the game. He's asking even more concrete questions. He wants to see how everything that he has really built here around this building, about the atmosphere, he’s developing. Still a lot work to do. They were, I know, they were talking a lot about the new plans with the stadium, even the new phases to even make bigger these training facilities. A lot of things around the club that are exciting for everyone and I'm very, very happy to be now in this situation so that I can have these good things there.
**MM: Did Bill say he'd like you to stay and sign a new deal?**
AI: No, we didn't talk about these things like you are asking me now.
**MM: Ten years ahead of the Man City game. We know that Evanilson was close to coming back. You've got three or four top players you can't even put in the matchday squad. Can you just give us an insight into the players that may or may not be available this weekend?**
AI: Yes, I think now we are in a good spot injury wise. I think we will recover Eva. He has been training most of the week, normal with the team. So now it's very difficult for me to make decisions because I have to leave some players out of the squad. But it's good because we are in a lovely place in that sense and we can approach the game in different ways and I will have to think very well what's going to be the possible starting 11 and the options from the bench.
**MM: I spoke to Tyler Adams last week who said I wouldn't want to be the head coach because right now there is so much quality in this team. You've got Eli Kroupi Junior who scored four goals in three and you've got Evanilson coming back who's a 35 million pound player. How do you keep everyone happy?**
AI: No, to keep everyone happy is impossible. We know this. When you are assigned to be a manager, you know this is that never happens. Everyone has to complain and it's natural that it's like this and should be like this also. But you have to accept these things. At the end, what you have to do I think is to put the team first. What gives us more chances in my opinion to take something from that game not only via the first eleven, but thinking on the possible second half changes and trying to give your team more chances. And I will have to take the decisions. It's not going to be the same decision or probably it's not going to decision for City and it's going to be next week for Villa and things happen. We still have another training tomorrow before we travel so I hope everything goes well and we are in a good spot. But difficult decisions but are decisions that we always want to take because you have more, more options available.
**MM: On paper, Man City have had their, their worst start to a Premier league season for five years. They've only picked up 16 points from the first nine games. But I guess this is the bit where you tell me they're still a very, very good side.**
AI: They are definitely a very, very good team. They are very, very good team. If this is the worst in five years, it's because they've been amazing. Amazing. They are still, I think, playing very well. I think the other day against Villa, they played a very good game after to beat these kind of teams, Villa scored from a set piece. They won over the line. These things have to go to your side if you have to have a chance against teams like City. But they are playing very well. They have Haaland that is probably better than ever, scoring a lot of goals. So he's very demanding. We know this.
**MM: You talk about Haaland. He's only scored one goal in six games against Bournemouth. You're one of the few Premier League sides that have been able to keep him quiet. How have you done it?**
AI: I don't really care about Haaland in the sense that I know I want to win the game, not Haaland not to score. If he scores two and we score three, I take it. Definitely take it. You know, it's not about only Haaland. We know that their main goal scorer is in great form. It's going to be very, very difficult to stop him. Very difficult because he's scoring most of the games. But it's a challenge that also we have to accept as defenders, as, as a group collectively. The problem is you focus too much on Haaland and they have tonnes of players. I think Marmoush, every time he plays against us, course, for example. So it's not about, let's focus on Erling. No. They have lots of threats and that's why they are so good, because you have to cover and sometimes you have to choose the poison. It's almost impossible to cover everything and. And you have to choose where to allow them a little bit more.
**MM: And just finally, for me, I know you're going to say it's still very early days and of course it still is, but the fact that you're second, you could create a five point gap to Manchester City if you were to win at the weekend with 10 games gone, which is over a quarter of the season. It just shows how much progress this club is making, how good this team is, how on board everyone is with what you're doing right now. Is this a real test about how good or bad or not so good you may be against a team like Man City.**
AI: No, I want City to win every game. I want Liverpool to win every game. I want Arsenal to win every game. I want. Those are not our rivals, you know, when they face other teams, I don't want them to lose any points, any point. It is like this. It's not because now for one week we could be because the goal difference a little bit ahead. No, no, I want them to win every game because at the end of the season we know we are not going to be there with those teams because they will be in other fights, we will be in another fight. And every time these teams play make no, I want them to win every game. Sometimes they cannot win both when they play each other, but I don't want them to lose any points, definitely.
**Paul Belverstone (Premier League Productions): What effect on the players and the club did the win against City at home have last season?**
AI: I think it was an important game for us that win. We've just beaten them once, you know, all the other games they've beaten us. We don't have even, I think not even a point away. So I think just beating them for first time it was like, okay, it's possible in a certain day where we play very well, probably they don't have their best day. We can do it. That gave us some confidence because I remember also was the same way we beat Arsenal both games at home and it gave us some more confidence. That is always welcome.
**PB: And they've changed their style a bit this season. They counter attack more. Are you expecting a different approach from your opponents?**
AI: I think I wouldn't say they changed their style. I think they've even become more dangerous in transitions. They still control the games a lot. They still have a lot of the ball. They push you a lot, put you under pressure. But I think they are exploiting even better the transitions. They are playing more direct when they recover and it makes them even more dangerous. Yes, I think they've added one more tool to an already very good squad.
**PB: I know you don't want to focus on Erling Haaland, but with him being in the form he is, when you are selecting your centre back pairing, how much do you look at who's going to be best against him and how much do you think, right, who's going to be best at delivering the ball when we've got it and that sort of stuff.**
AI: The problem is if you want to stop Haaland, you think, okay, I will put three, no, four centre backs if they allow me. The problem Is you lock players after for the other zone. So you cannot just protect. No. We are going to be very compact there and don't give him space. And they have a lot of threats. So it's not like you hope whoever is against him, and he's not going to be always the same player deals with him as well as he can. Sometimes it's almost impossible because he's so fast, so powerful. Also smart, I think, on the box. But this is the challenge. That's why we are here playing and my players are playing in the Premier League, to deal with strikers like Haaland. We have to trust them.
**PB: He's only not scored in two Premier League games this season and City have lost both. So if you do stop him, you win.**
AI: That's the key. You gave me the key. The problem is now it's very difficult to do this and to take him out of the scoring sheet. I think it's a guarantee. He's, I don't know, probably the best finisher right now in the world, I would say, like the proper number nine that you imagine when you talk about a number nine. But we have to play against him twice a year. We have to try to minimise the very good things he has. Yes.
**PB: Pep has done more than anyone to influence world football. What did it do for you when he said last year, modern football is the way Bournemouth play?**
AI: I think he used also other teams as examples, not only us. I understood or more or less what he wanted to say. I think we are demanding more to the players, not just before, it was like every position, you are the number 10. You have to be amazing in small spaces. You have to be. No, no, you have to be amazing everywhere. On the ball, without the ball, running the space, coming to the safe, winning aerial duels and the game. Football is becoming more demanding because of this, because now they are not, I think, specialists. I think almost every player has to do everything offensively, defensively, and this is not. The football evolves and I think this is the main reason.
**PB: One player who's performing particularly well for you, Alex Scott, he started eight Premier League games last year. He's already started eight this season. You said to us in April that he could be a great number eight. How's he doing?**
AI: He's doing very well. He's playing very well and I hope we can keep him in this spot. I think also the competition with Ryan is very good for the team. Very difficult for me because I really love both players and sometimes I think they could play together. But Alex, I think is the first long spell without injuries because he has had two seasons with us, three different knee injuries. So he has been always like a run of games and stop another three, four months and then another run of games. And now I think he has been like playing in a good level, I would say since the Euros when he was very important for England with the under 21s. He came in a really good place to preseason. Very good preseason. And now I feel he's enjoying even playing and I hope we can give him that.