Bournemouth news: Opinion – Can Iraola’s side find good form again?

It has been quite the season for Andoni Iraola’s Bournemouth side, but of late they are most certainly hitting a bump in the road.

While this campaign has seen the Cherries put together a impressive record-breaking run of 11 games without defeat, now, they are without a win in four. Considering the side have been consistently exceeding expectations this campaign, you start to wonder whether a blip was always inevitable.

Weirdly, the dip in form has coincided with many key players returning to the squad from injury – so, in many ways, it does not make sense. During Bournemouth’s unbeaten run, they often had a bench full of academy players who had no senior minutes, whereas now, the bench regularly consists of internationals who would start for many big sides.

Similarly, up until recently, the Cherries have pretty much always been seen as the ‘underdog’ and have often used that siege mentality as a driving force to surprise many neutrals with both their performances and results.

Could it be that our opponents have started to figure out how best to deal with our approach? Both Brentford and Wolves gained results at Vitality Stadium in similar fashion – by frustrating the south coast side, hurting them consistently in transitions. Or perhaps it is simply the case that the aggressive and energy zapping style that Iraola’s team play has become a little too much on the legs for certain players?

Either way, it is a long and gruelling season, and with an FA Cup quarter-final around the corner, Bournemouth still have so much to play for.

I still fancy the team to bounce-back and surprise the masses as they so regularly do, but the recent run has perhaps provided a grounding for many an ecstatic Cherries fan.

Find more from Tom Jordan at Back of the Net