Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola has talked up Everton ahead of tonight's Premier League meeting at the Vitality Stadium
Andoni Iraola, Bournemouth boss, has been talking up Everton
Andoni Iraola, Bournemouth boss, has been talking up Everton(Image: Robin Jones - AFC Bournemouth/AFC Bournemouth via Getty Images)
View Image
Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola has named the three 'quality' Everton players his side will have to be wary of at the Vitality Stadium tonight (7.30pm kick-off). The Cherries have become something of a bogey club for the Blues.
They have won eight of the last 10 competitive meetings between the sides and will go into this evening's encounter looking to make it five straight wins over Everton, who are hurting after going down 4-1 at home to Newcastle United.
That said, Bournemouth are not in great form, with their 3-2 loss at Sunderland, a match in which they led 2-0, stretching their winless run in the Premier League to four games.
And Iraola has been impressed by David Moyes' men and a trio of their attacking players in particular.
He said: “I know that it’s going to be very difficult, this game.
“Everton is a team that is, for me, playing very well. They’re now with (Jack) Grealish, with (Iliman) Ndiaye, with (Kiernan) Dewsbury-Hall.
“They are players that have quality there, and they can create from situations that you think you have under control and make things happen.
“And for me, it’s going to be a big test for us. I think we need a good result, I would say even more than a good game.
“A good result, and we will have to be very good, because I know they are good.”
Iraola will be without the suspended David Brooks, Marcos Senesi and Lewis Cook against the Blues while Ryan Christie and Ben Gannon-Doak remain sidelined through injury.
The Cherries will be defending an unbeaten home record tonight after winning four and drawing two of their six Premier League games in front of their own supporters.
But after keeping a clean sheet in the 2-0 win over Nottingham Forest at the Vitality on October 26, they have conceded 12 goals in their last four matches.
And Iraola said: “I think it's our main issue now, we have to focus on improving defensively, it doesn't matter the goals we score if we are conceding two or three goals a game.
“We are conceding a lot of goals, which are mainly coming from set plays, where at the start of the season we weren't, which makes it very difficult in the Premier League to compete.
“I think to make something sustainable, we have to be defensively solid.”