Andoni Iraola
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Bournemouth’s search for a victory extended as they were held to a draw by Burnley, courtesy of a late equalizer from Armando Broja. The Cherries had taken the lead through Antoine Semenyo, but their recurring issues with defending set pieces proved costly once more. A short corner from Burnley led to Marcus Edwards delivering a cross that Broja converted, leaving Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola frustrated with his team’s defensive lapses.
Andoni Iraola said: “It’s costing us a lot, defensive set plays. Djordje Petrovic after Burnley equalise. They jump more than us. It’s a great header from Broja. But every time you concede a set play goal, it’s something that you can defend better. And it’s true that we know, we’ve spoken here a lot of times, we are not the tallest team, we have difficult matchups and it’s costing us a lot.”
The boss continued: “You can send, maybe Ryan Christie is the second player, that goes a little bit quicker. But it’s difficult when they take it short to block the cross. It can be a little bit from far if you are very quick to go to release and then they cross it from a little bit more far, two metres. But it’s difficult to block the cross, but I think we have to do more in the marking, in the header and this is something that is costing us a lot because we’ve conceded in the last games almost one set play goal every game.”
Bournemouth’s struggles with set pieces have been a persistent issue, as highlighted by Iraola’s comments. The manager acknowledged the team’s lack of height and the challenges it presents in defensive matchups. Despite efforts to address these vulnerabilities, Bournemouth has conceded set-piece goals in successive matches, underlining the need for improvement in this area.
The draw against Burnley leaves Bournemouth still searching for their first win since the end of October. As the team looks to climb the Premier League table, resolving their defensive set-piece issues will be crucial to securing future victories. Iraola’s side will need to find a way to better manage these situations if they are to turn their fortunes around and achieve the desired results.
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