When Iraola arrived in the summer of 2023, the club had maintained their Premier League status by five points under the management of Gary O’Neil.
The Cherries shocked the football world when they announced that O’Neil’s reward for keeping them up was a sacking, and in came Iraola, a relatively unknown name who had left Rayo Vallecano at the end of that campaign.
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But Iraola has more than proved any of those doubters wrong about his ability, and it has propelled the Cherries up the table.
It was a slightly bumpy start for Iraola at Dean Court.
Andoni Iraola (Image: Richard Crease)
Outside of League Cup wins over Swansea and Stoke, Bournemouth went through August, September and most of October without recording a victory in the league.
That left them in the bottom three of the table, with just three points from their opening nine games, and those doubters lauding that they had been proved right.
But on the pitch, things were clearly moving in the right direction, and Bournemouth stuck with their man.
His first win came at home against Burnley in the tenth round, and, while they were knocked out of the League Cup by Liverpool and then comfortably beaten by Manchester City, they found some form.
Andoni Iraola. (Image: Richard Crease)
A run of seven games unbeaten, with six of those wins, saw the Cherries move into the top ten of the league heading into the new year, and relieving any thoughts of relegation.
2024 started slowly, with no win in the league until the start of March, but Iraola successfully took the Cherries to a solid midtable finish and a club record points haul of 48.
Highlights of the season included a sensational comeback to beat Luton and a 3-0 triumph over Manchester United at Old Trafford.
The 2024/25 campaign would prove to be another record breaker.
Andoni Iraola. (Image: Richard Crease)
A solid start to the season was sparked into life by a dramatic comeback at Everton, where they trailed by two goals with three minutes to play and won 3-2.
Solid form would see the Cherries end November in 13th after a remarkable 4-2 win at Wolves, with Justin Kluivert scoring a hattrick of penalties.
That game began a record unbeaten run in the Premier League that ran to 11 games, and culminated in a 4-1 win at Newcastle and 5-0 victory over Nottingham Forest.
Defeat to Liverpool ended that run, but a 3-1 victory at Southampton completed the double over their south coast neighbours and saw Bournemouth sit fifth after 25 games of the season with 43 points.
Andoni Iraola celebrating the Cherries' victory over Arsenal (Image: Richard Crease)
A difficult run followed, though, which took the club out of European contention.
Bournemouth matched their record FA Cup run under Iraola last season, as they reached the quarterfinals, where they were beaten by Man City.
A solid close to the campaign, which included a first away win at Arsenal to complete the double over the Gunners, took Bournemouth to another record points haul of 56, and a ninth-placed finish.
This season began with questions over how the Cherries would fare without Dean Huijsen, Illia Zabarnyi, Milos Kerkez, Kepa and Dango Ouattara, as all departed the club in the summer.
Andoni Iraola (Image: Richard Crease)
An impressive performance in defeat vs Liverpool, particularly from Antoine Semenyo, got the season going, and the Cherries proved they did not miss the departed.
They went eight games unbeaten after that opening day defeat, and were second in the table after nine matches.
A disappointing and at times hugely frustrating run of 11 games without a win followed, but after a 4-1 thumping at Brentford after Christmas, Bournemouth’s fortunes changed.
A draw at Chelsea and a good showing in defeat to league leaders Arsenal came next, and after Semenyo bid farewell to the club with a stoppage time winner vs Spurs to return the club to winning ways, they have not tasted defeat since.
Andoni Iraola . (Image: Richard Crease)
A penalty shootout loss in the FA Cup at Newcastle came after the Spurs win, but a run of four wins and seven draws has seen since that game in the north east has seen the club’s record unbeaten run in the top flight stretch to 12 games.
While Iraola has confirmed his departure at the end of the season with six games to play, he will be keen to sign off on the south coast with a strong finish – and potentially European qualification.