AFC Bournemouth
Eddie Howe says he will rotate his squad for the Carabao Cup visit of Forest Green Rovers and give chances to players looking to stake their claims for Premier League minutes.
The cup tie comes in a busy week which started with the visit of champions Manchester City on Sunday and ends with a trip to unbeaten Leicester City on Saturday.
With striker Dominic Solanke impressing from the bench during the fledgling campaign, Howe said in his pre-match press conference that he’s looking forward to seeing players taking their opportunities.
He said: “With such a quick turnaround and with Leicester City coming up quickly afterwards we will have to rotate our squad and give players opportunities, I look forward to seeing how people play.
“It’s a big opportunity for Dom, but also for other players who will be looking to put themselves in the frame for more Premier League games.”
The Cherries have reached the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup for the last two seasons – losing away to Chelsea in the last eight on both occasions – and the Bournemouth manager is keen to show the right approach against Forest Green to start another run in the trophy.
“We have done well in the competition in recent seasons and have shown a good attitude in these types of games, which can be difficult. The first challenge is for us to be professional in our approach.
“We’ve watched Forest Green and they’re a good team. They’re doing well in their league and they’re doing it in a slightly different way. As a coach that deserves to be applauded, they play football from the back and have some innovative ideas, their players are taking on that approach very well.
“We need to get ourselves right first and then hopefully our quality will shine through.”
