If January was supposed to be the month that finally derailed Bournemouth’s improbable European flirtation, then February has already delivered a rather loud rebuttal.
The Cherries have taken 10 points from their last four Premier League matches, winning three and drawing one, reversing the inertia of a grim mid-season wobble and reasserting themselves as one of the league’s most awkward, aggressive and strangely compelling sides.
That this resurgence has arrived so soon after the sale of Antoine Semenyo to Manchester City only sharpens the point: this is not a one-man team, and it certainly isn’t a fragile one.
For a few weeks around Christmas, Bournemouth looked cooked. The pressing intensity dipped, the margins started going against them and defeats piled up with uncomfortable familiarity.
The sense was that Andoni Iraola’s high-octane system had finally hit the wall, its demands too extreme for a squad built on clever recruitment rather than unlimited resources.
Then came January, Semenyo departed, and the narrative felt ready-made: best player gone, momentum broken, season drifting into mid-table anonymity.
Instead, Bournemouth have responded by looking sharper, more cohesive and, in some ways, more dangerous.
Semenyo’s departure was not insignificant. His explosive start to life at City – where he has already become a regular starter and a frequent difference-maker – has only underlined what Bournemouth have lost.
He was the Cherries’ most direct attacker, their chaos agent, the one player who could turn low-possession spells into goals with brute athleticism and fearless running.
And yet, rather than attempting to replace Semenyo like-for-like, Iraola has doubled down on structure, rotation and collective responsibility. The result has been a team that spreads the attacking load more evenly and looks harder to nullify.
The numbers tell part of the story.
Bournemouth have scored nine goals in their last four matches, conceding just four, and have done so with five different goalscorers. The pressing metrics are back up to early-season levels, with Iraola’s side once again ranking among the league’s most aggressive out-of-possession teams over this stretch.
More importantly, the wins have not been flukes or smash-and-grab jobs. Bournemouth have controlled territory, dominated second balls and forced opponents into mistakes, which is exactly how Iraola wants his football to look.
Central to this revival has been the rapid emergence of Junior Kroupi, who is quickly becoming one of the Premier League’s most intriguing young forwards.
Signed with potential rather than instant expectation, Kroupi has used Semenyo’s exit as an open invitation. He has responded with decisive goals, clever movement between the lines and a level of composure that belies his age.
There is something very Bournemouth about this. Develop a talent, let him shine, watch the market circle. Semenyo followed that pattern and Kroupi already looks destined for the same conveyor belt.
Iraola’s system is becoming a shop window for intelligent attackers, a place where young players are trusted, coached and exposed to meaningful responsibility.
The club’s recruitment department deserves credit, but it is Iraola who turns raw tools into functional weapons.
What makes Bournemouth’s current position particularly impressive is the context.
This is not a team parking itself in mid-table and hoping the calendar breaks kindly. They are actively pushing towards the European places, having regained momentum in recent weeks.
With a third of the season remaining, Bournemouth are not chasing a miracle; they are in the conversation on merit.
And hovering above all of this is Iraola’s own future. His contract expires at the end of the season and the list of clubs quietly monitoring his work grows longer every week.
It is impossible to ignore the obvious candidate.
Manchester United, drifting between short-term fixes and long-term confusion, are exactly the type of institution that will look at Iraola’s Bournemouth and see something they no longer possess: identity.
His football is proactive, modern and demanding. It is also adaptable, as the post-Semenyo bounce has demonstrated.
That combination is rare.
Manchester United manager for first game of 2026/27 season (odds via Sky Bet)
- Michael Carrick - 4/6
- Oliver Glasner - 5/1
- Gareth Southgate - 6/1
- Thomas Tuchel - 10/1
- Julian Nagelsmann - 14/1
- Luis Enrique - 20/1
- Ole Gunnar Solskjær - 22/1
- Carlo Ancelotti - 22/1
- ANDONI IRAOLA - 25/1
Odds correct at 15:35 GMT (04/02/26)
Bournemouth, a club once defined by survival scrapes and resourcefulness, may soon be forced into another managerial rebuild not because Iraola failed, but because he succeeded too loudly.
For now, though, the focus remains on the pitch. Bournemouth are running again, pressing again, believing again.
Semenyo’s shadow looms large, but it no longer dominates the conversation. Instead, it is Kroupi’s emergence, the squad’s collective edge and Iraola’s relentless coaching that define this moment.
This is not a team clinging on to relevance; it is one pushing forward with purpose.
If Bournemouth do end up in Europe next season, it will not be because they stumbled into it. It will be because, when adversity arrived in the form of their best player leaving mid-season, they adapted, recalibrated and accelerated.
That is the clearest sign yet that Iraola is not just building a good team. He is building a system that survives change.
And in modern football, that is the real luxury.
More from Sporting Life
Safer gambling
We are committed in our support of safer gambling. Recommended bets are advised to over-18s and we strongly encourage readers to wager only what they can afford to lose.
If you are concerned about your gambling, please call the National Gambling Helpline / GamCare on 0808 8020 133.
Further support and information can be found at begambleaware.org and gamblingtherapy.org.
