The two sides played out a draw without score at the London Stadium, and, while both sides had their chances, neither was able to break the deadlock.
Match report:
The draw does extend Bournemouth’s unbeaten run to seven games in the league, though, and Iraola, who was watching from the stands due to his suspension, was happy with the point.
“I think it's a good point for us,” he told the Daily Echo.
“If you ask me about the performance, I didn't like our performance in the first half. I think second half was much better from our side. At least the game was more open.
(Image: John Walton/PA Wire)
“We had our moments to try to score, we hit the post. They had also their moments, but the game we wanted to play was more like the second half game than the one we played in the first half, where we've never looked like threatening for them.”
Asked why he wasn’t impressed with the first half, Iraola said he believes the team started too slow.
“It's something that we knew because I think West Ham has scored the first goal in the last eight games or something like this,” he explained.
“So we knew they are in need of wins, so probably they are going to start strong, get ready.
“But even if we knew, they've started a lot better than us, in their reaction times, in the second balls, in the small things that decide football games.
(Image: John Walton/PA Wire)
“And we were not winning our duels. The offensive players, they were not playing well.
“I think second half, at least, we've looked a lot more dangerous. Even if we haven't scored, I think we were in with good options.”
There were a few early chances in the first period, but for much of the half both sides seemed to cancel each other out, and that continued in the first quarter of the second half.
On what that was, Iraola said: “I think the game has gone quite slow, especially in the first half, and it's not good for us.
(Image: John Walton/PA Wire)
“We were on the ball, but we were not looking dangerous.
“We were not vertical enough, and we've had to wait until they got a little bit tired, and then it opens a lot more the game, you find your transition moments.
“We've had a lot of three against twos, four against threes. Some of them we finished them quite well, others we haven't even finished them.
“But it was more the game that we wanted to play, and until that moment, probably it was more the game that West Ham wanted to play.”