AFC Bournemouth
Three promotions and a play-off near-miss – the 2010s have unquestionably been the most successful decade in the club’s history.
In the second of a two-part review, afcb.co.uk chronicles the main events of the second half of the past ten years, a period which included the rise from the Championship to the Premier League.
2015
Despite losing two of their first three league games of the year – against Norwich and Leeds – the Cherries remained top of the Championship.
And while they registered a resounding 5-1 win at Rotherham in the third round of the FA Cup, they bowed out at the next hurdle after going down to Aston Villa.
Back-to-back wins against Watford and Wigan saw the Cherries maintain top spot in early February, although Derby and Middlesbrough were both breathing down their necks.
And their lengthy stay at the summit came to an end after honours had finished even when the Rams visited Vitality Stadium on February 10th with Boro’s win at Blackpool seeing them go top.
Although a 1-1 home draw with Huddersfield saw the Cherries briefly reclaim pole position, they slipped to fourth after suffering two defeats on the trot at Brentford and Nottingham Forest.
A 0-0 draw with Blackburn at Vitality Stadium was followed by a hat-trick of wins, the second of which was one of the highlights of the season – an emphatic 5-1 victory in front of the Sky Sports cameras at Fulham.
Brett Pitman’s fantastic solo goal and Steve Cook’s stunning volley will both live long in the memory, the demolition of the Cottagers leaving the Cherries top on goal difference from Derby, Watford and Middlesbrough – with all four teams on 66 points and Norwich a point behind in fifth.
The congested nature of the league saw the Cherries slip out of the automatic promotion places after drawing 1-1 at Cardiff before a clinical 3-0 win over Middlesbrough took them back to the top with seven games remaining.
Kenwyne Jones marked his arrival on loan from Cardiff by scoring a dramatic late leveller in a 1-1 draw at Ipswich before three wins in succession left the Cherries a point clear of Norwich and Watford with three games to go.
And although an incident-packed 2-2 draw with Sheffield Wednesday threatened to spoil the party, the promotion dream finally became a reality when Bolton were beaten 3-0 at Vitality Stadium, an achievement recognised all over the world.
With the title on the line, there was still time for some late drama as Atdhe Nuhiu’s late equaliser for Sheffield Wednesday’s at Watford ensured Eddie Howe’s heroes would be crowned champions following their 3-0 win at Charlton.
At the Football League awards, Howe was named manager of the decade, while he was also recognised as the manager of the season by the League Managers’ Association. Simon Francis and Matt Ritchie were both named in the Championship team of the season.
Ahead of the club’s first season in the Premier League, boss Howe signed Joshua King, Tyrone Mings, Sylvain Distin, Adam Federici, Max Gradel, Glenn Murray and Lee Tomlin, while Artur Boruc’s loan was made permanent.
Ian Harte announced his retirement, Brett Pitman was granted a free transfer and joined Ipswich, Ryan Fraser joined the Tractor Boys on loan and Greatest Escape veterans Josh McQuoid and Joe Partington both left the club.
The Cherries travelled to the United States for a pre-season training camp which included a 4-1 win over Philadelphia Union. They also played French outfit Nantes and Hoffenheim from the Bundesliga.
Despite losing their first two games in the top flight, including a controversial defeat at Liverpool where a goal from Tommy Elphick was wrongly ruled out, history was made in stunning fashion when the Cherries registered their first win.
Callum Wilson’s hat-trick and a goal from Marc Pugh – which meant he had scored in the top five divisions in England – earned the Cherries a memorable 4-3 victory on a baking-hot August afternoon at West Ham.
Wins, however, were hard to come by with the Cherries taking seven points from their next 11 games, leaving them in the bottom three at the end of November.
To compound their problems, leading goalscorer Callum Wilson sustained a serious knee injury during a 2-1 defeat at Stoke in September, which would rule him out for almost seven months.
However, the tide turned in spectacular fashion as the Cherries doubled their points tally in December, chalking up consecutive wins against Chelsea, West Brom and Manchester United and drawing with Crystal Palace on Boxing Day as they climbed to 16th at the turn of an historic year.
This year, the Cherries mourned the loss of former players Ray Weigh and Derek Stroud and club stalwart Mick Cunningham.
2016
During a busy January transfer window, Benik Afobe arrived from Wolves, Lewis Grabban returned to the club from Norwich, as did Rhoys Wiggins from Sheffield Wednesday.
Winger Juan Iturbe was signed on loan from Italian outfit Roma, while Lee Tomlin (Bristol City), Ryan Allsop (Wycombe) and Baily Cargill (Coventry) all secured loan moves.
A notable departure during the month saw popular striker Yann Kermorgant, who played a key role in the club’s Championship-winning campaign, sold to Reading.
Victories over Birmingham City and Portsmouth saw the Cherries progress to the fifth round of the FA Cup for only the fourth time in their history.
Their improved form in the Premier League continued with wins over Norwich and Crystal Palace, coupled with draws against champions-in-waiting Leicester and Sunderland, moving them seven points clear of the danger zone at the start of February.
The gap, however, had closed to five points by the end of the month with home defeats to Arsenal and Stoke City followed by a 0-0 draw at Watford.
Second-half goals from Everton’s Ross Barkley and Romelu Lukaku also brought an end to the FA Cup adventure after Charlie Daniels had seen his first-half penalty saved by Joel Robles.
In true AFC Bournemouth fashion, the team responded by registering a hat-trick of wins in the top flight, including a first league victory against neighbours Southampton since 1958.
Goals from Steve Cook and Afobe sunk the Saints at Vitality Stadium before Newcastle and Swansea were also defeated as the Cherries moved 13 points clear of danger with just eight games remaining.
Although they would have to wait a little longer to be guaranteed of safety, goals from Cook and Joshua King earned the Cherries a 2-1 win at Aston Villa which pushed them through the 40-point barrier in early April. The Villa Park showdown also saw the return to action of striker Wilson.
Confirmation that the Cherries had preserved their top-flight status came following a 2-1 defeat by Everton at Goodison Park with Norwich’s loss at Arsenal in the late kick-off leaving Howe’s team clear of the bottom three.
Reacting to the achievement, chairman Jeff Mostyn said: “I have said all along that staying in this division probably surpasses even the incredible achievement of winning the Championship last season.”
The Cherries eventually finished 16th and eight points clear of the relegation zone. Andrew Surman was the only ever present in the Premier League while Matt Ritchie and Charlie Daniels missed just one game and Cook two.
A hectic summer of transfer activity saw Emerson Hyndman, Lys Mousset, Lewis Cook, Jordon Ibe, Brad Smith, Mark Travers and Marc Wilson arrive at Vitality Stadium while two notable loan signings were Nathan Ake from Chelsea and Jack Wilshere from Arsenal.
Departures included Championship-winning captain Tommy Elphick, who left for Aston Villa, and Matt Ritchie, who joined Newcastle United. Glenn Murray was loaned to Brighton.
Pre-season friendlies included a 4-0 win over Minnesota United and a 1-1 draw with La Liga outfit Valencia before the season proper opened with a 3-1 defeat at the hands of Manchester United.
Ryan Fraser was handed his Premier League debut in a 1-0 reverse at West Ham and Callum Wilson’s goal earned the Cherries their first top-flight win of the campaign against West Brom.
Junior Stanislas netted the only goal to see off Everton at Vitality Stadium and was on target twice in the 6-1 triumph over Hull City in October.
One of the most memorable wins in the club’s history saw them overturn a 3-1 deficit with 15 minutes to go to run out 4-3 victors against Liverpool thanks to Ake’s dramatic late goal.
The Cherries ended 2016 in tenth place having beaten reigning champions Leicester thanks to Marc Pugh’s goal and won 3-0 at Swansea on New Year’s Eve.
This year, the Cherries mourned the loss of club chaplain Rev Alan Fisher and former player John O’Rourke.
2017
Goals from Charlie Daniels, Ryan Fraser and a Callum Wilson penalty saw the Cherries race into a 3-0 lead against Arsenal at Vitality Stadium in the first game of the new year.
However, a stirring second-half comeback saw the Gunners salvage a point from a thrilling 3-3 draw thanks to Alexis Sanchez, Lucas Perez and Olivier Giroud.
It was the first of an eight-match winless run in the Premier League which saw the Cherries slip to 14th, just five points clear of the relegation zone, by the start of March.
And the Arsenal match was also the final game of Nathan Ake’s hugely-successful loan spell, the defender recalled by parent club Chelsea.
On a fairly low-key deadline day, the Cherries completed the signing of young goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale from Sheffield United before disaster struck just hours later when Wilson sustained another serious knee injury in training which would sideline him for nine months.
Also during the transfer window, Glenn Murray’s move to Brighton was made permanent, while Lewis Grabban (Reading) and Marc Wilson (West Brom) secured loan moves.
An eventful 1-1 draw against Manchester United, which saw Andrew Surman sent off on the stroke of half-time, saw the Cherries leave Old Trafford undefeated for the first time in their history.
It was followed by Joshua King bagging a maiden top-flight hat-trick in a 3-2 win over West Ham and a 2-0 home victory against Swansea, a run of results which earned Eddie Howe his first Premier League manager-of-the-month award.
Back-to-back draws on the road at Southampton and Liverpool saw the Cherries climb seven points clear of the bottom three with seven games remaining.
Although the next two games were lost against Tottenham and Chelsea, a strong finish saw the Cherries win three and draw two of their final five games.
A 1-1 draw against Leicester, last season’s champions, ensured Howe’s team would finish a club record ninth in the Premier League standings.
Howe said: “We were looking to improve on last season but a top-half finish was not something which was really on our list.
“Of course, we would have loved to have done it but it wasn’t something we were planning for in the early part of the season.
“It’s all about improvement rather than numbers and figures. We have improved quickly and I think it’s full justification of how good the players have been.”
Steve Cook was the only ever present, although no fewer than seven players – Artur Boruc, Simon Francis, Harry Arter, Charlie Daniels, Benik Afobe, Adam Smith and Joshua King – all made 34 or more appearances.
Nathan Ake returned to the club on a permanent transfer from Chelsea ahead of the start of the 2017/18 campaign, while Asmir Begovic and Jermain Defoe joined him at Vitality Stadium.
Southern Spain was the venue for the club’s pre-season training camp, while Valencia and Napoli were among the opponents for warm-up matches.
However, despite an encouraging set of results during pre-season, the Premier League campaign started with four successive defeats.
And although Defoe and Andrew Surman netted in a 2-1 win over Brighton, a 1-0 defeat at Tottenham left the Cherries second from bottom after eight games.
Striker Wilson returned to hit a hat-trick in a 4-0 victory over Huddersfield in mid-November, a third win in four Premier League games.
But it would take until the penultimate day of the year for the Cherries to register their next top-flight win, Ryan Fraser scoring twice in a 2-1 victory at home to Everton as Howe’s team entered 2018 just two points above the drop zone.
This year, the Cherries mourned the loss of former players John Arnott, Roy Gater, Jimmy White, Rod Taylor, Len Gaynor, Dennis Bushby and Terry Murray and safety officer John Steele.
2018
Apart from a disappointing defeat in an FA Cup third round replay at Wigan, the Cherries remained unbeaten in January, twice coming from behind to force a 2-2 draw at Brighton on New Year’s Day.
And they also did it the hard way to register a first win over Arsenal after the Gunners had taken the lead through Hector Bellerin at Vitality Stadium.
Second-half goals from Callum Wilson and Jordon Ibe helped Eddie Howe finally get one over legendary Gunners manager Arsene Wenger.
Following a 1-1 draw at West Ham, the Cherries returned to the capital 11 days later to register another famous victory against Chelsea.
Callum Wilson, Junior Stanislas and Nathan Ake were all on target in the second half as Howe’s team stormed Stamford Bridge for the second time in three seasons.
The win capped an excellent month which saw the Cherries climb into the top ten for the first time this season and earned Howe his second Premier League manager-of-the-month award.
A 2-1 win over Stoke City at Vitality Stadium, courtesy of goals from Joshua King and Lys Mousset, took the Cherries to ninth, their highest league placing of the season.
But their hopes of eclipsing the previous season’s club-best finish of ninth were effectively undone when they took just seven points from their next ten games, leaving them 12th at the end of April.
However, another impressive campaign in the top flight ended with back-to-back wins against Swansea and Burnley as the Cherries finished 12th, level on 44 points with Newcastle and Crystal Palace.
Manager Howe described it as “a huge achievement” and “a great job by the players”, adding he knew there were “things we can work on and analyse and things we can do better”.
Summer signings Nathan Ake and Asmir Begovic both featured in all 38 games in the Premier League, while Callum Wilson and Joshua King finished as joint leading goalscorers with nine in all competitions.
The Cherries announced David Brooks as their first signing ahead of their fourth season in the Premier League, with Diego Rico and Jefferson Lerma following later in the summer.
Brooks arrived from Sheffield United, Rico from La Liga outfit Leganes and Lerma from Levante, the midfielder having lined up for Colombia against England in the World Cup.
A host of departures from the club included Benik Afobe (Wolves), Max Gradel (Toulouse), Lewis Grabban (Nottingham Forest) and Adam Federici (Stoke), while Rhoys Wiggins was forced to retire due to injury.
A pre-season games programme which had started with a 1-1 draw against Sevilla in Murcia ended with an impressive 5-2 victory over French powerhouses Marseille.
And the Cherries continued their good form into the start of the Premier League campaign with Callum Wilson on target in wins over Cardiff and West Ham.
Ryan Fraser’s double paved the way for 4-2 victory over Leicester which took the Cherries to fifth, the highest league placing in the club’s history, by mid-September.
And the flying start continued into October with wins over Crystal Palace, Watford and Fulham earning boss Howe his third Premier League manager-of-the-month award.
Although a run of just two wins in their next ten league games saw the Cherries reach the turn of the year in 12th place, they again made the quarter-final of the Carabao Cup, bowing out 1-0 against Chelsea, one of eight games during a punishing December.
This year, the club mourned the loss of popular former head groundsman John Harriss, Dr Alan Ogden and ex-players Rodney Taylor, Chris Weller and Ian Allen.
2019
The Cherries kicked off the year by sharing six goals with Watford in a thrilling 3-3 draw at Vitality Stadium with all the goals coming during a frenetic 26-minute spell in the first half.
A disappointing FA Cup exit at the hands of Brighton is followed by a 2-0 reverse at Everton in the Premier League where new loan signing Nathaniel Clyne makes his debut.
Clyne, who joined from Liverpool, was joined at Vitality Stadium by striker Dominic Solanke from Chelsea and defender Chris Mepham from Brentford who both signed permanent deals.
Tyrone Mings (Aston Villa), Jermain Defoe (Rangers) and Marc Pugh (Hull City) all secured loan moves away from the club during the transfer window.
Back-to-back home wins against West Ham and Chelsea took the Cherries into the top half of the table by the end of January, 14 points clear of the bottom three and 12 shy of the top six.
Callum Wilson netted a stunning opener to pave the way for the win over the Hammers, while Mepham came off the bench to make his Premier League debut in the 4-0 triumph against Chelsea.
Although in-form pair Wilson and Ryan Fraser scored during a 2-0 win at Huddersfield, it proved to be the only victory in February and March as the Cherries took five points from eight games.
Off the pitch, boss Eddie Howe was awarded the Freedom of the Borough for his key role in the club’s rise through the leagues.
The council’s highest mark of esteem was granted after Howe took the Cherries from League Two to the Premier League.
Howe was quick to acknowledge the club’s “incredible fans” while accepting the award at the authority’s last full meeting.
The Cherries celebrated by registering an emphatic 5-0 win at Brighton to complete the double over the Seagulls and drew 3-3 at Southampton in an absolute thriller.
Mark Travers became the 15th youngest goalkeeper to debut in the Premier League when he started the 1-0 victory over Tottenham in the final home game of the season.
The Irishman was 14 days short of his 20th birthday when he lined up in the club’s first top-flight win against Spurs and also started at Crystal Palace as the Cherries brought down the curtain on their fourth Premier League campaign in 14th place, level on 45 points with Newcastle.
Summer recruit Jefferson Lerma capped an impressive first year in England by winning the club’s goal-of-the-season award for his stunning strike in the 5-3 defeat at Selhurst Park.
Ahead of the Tottenham game, loyal servant Pugh was given an emotional guard of honour after his success-laden nine-year stay at the club had come to an end.
Outgoing summer transfers saw defender Tyrone Mings make permanent his loan move to promoted Aston Villa, while striker Lys Mousset joined Sheffield United, another club which had returned to the top flight.
A host of loan moves included Harry Arter to Fulham, Sam Surridge to Swansea, Asmir Begovic to Qarabag, Emerson Hyndman to Atlanta United, Nnamdi Ofoborh to Wycombe and Kyle Taylor to Forest Green.
The Cherries’ squad strengthening saw four permanent additions – Arnaut Danjuma (Club Brugge), Philip Billing (Huddersfield), Lloyd Kelly (Bristol City) and Jack Stacey (Luton Town) – with Harry Wilson arriving on loan from Liverpool.
One of the highlights of another solid pre-season campaign was an impressive 3-0 win over French Champions League qualifiers Lyon with young midfielder Gavin Kilkenny opening the scoring with a finely-taken striker.
Aaron Ramsdale’s exploits during the Cherries’ warm-up campaign saw him handed the goalkeeper’s shirt for the Premier League curtain-raiser against his former club Sheffield United, the Blades levelling late on to earn a 1-1 draw.
Ramsdale then played his part as the Cherries opened their win account at Aston Villa thanks to Joshua King’s penalty and Harry Wilson’s stunning second.
Despite going down narrowly to champions Manchester City and much-fancied Leicester City, the Cherries responded in style by beating Everton 3-1 thanks to Callum Wilson’s double and a Ryan Fraser goal.
And they followed up by claiming a first away league win against Southampton with Nathan Ake and the Wilsons all on the scoresheet in the 3-1 victory at St Mary’s.
Plans for a new training ground were approved by Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council’s planning committee in October.
The revised plans for a facility on the 57-acre former Canford Magna Golf Club site were unanimously agreed, the training ground to include nine full-size pitches, an indoor artificial surface as well as medical and sports science facilities.
Joshua King scored against his former club Manchester United as the Cherries recorded a 1-0 win over the Red Devils to reach the start of November well placed in seventh position in the Premier League.
But as injuries started to hit the squad, a run of five successive defeats dropped them to 15th by early December.
However, a patched-up team managed to deny the odds by claiming another memorable victory against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge with Dan Gosling's goal earning the Cherries their third win in five visits to the venue in the top flight.
Gosling was again on target as the Cherries brought down the curtain on the decade at Vitality Stadium with a 1-1 draw against Arsenal on Boxing Day, although a memorable ten years on the pitch ended in defeat at Brighton two days later.
This year, the Cherries mourned the loss of former chairman and director Peter Hayward and ex-players Graham Newton and Albert Keetley.
