Bournemouth and Stoke meet in the third round of the Carabao Cup on Tuesday evening.
While Stoke hope for an upset, there’s reason to get behind the Cherries. Andoni Iraola hasn’t had the easiest start to life in the Premier League, but there’s reason to be confident in the Spaniard. He did an excellent job at Rayo Vallecano, where he also took the Copa Del Rey seriously.
As a Segunda Liga side, Iraola’s Rayo made it to the last-32 only to lose to Barcelona. In 2021/22 after promotion, they made it to the semi-finals. With Bournemouth struggling early on in the league, expect their new coach to make this competition a priority.
Bournemouth vs Stoke Tips
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Both sides have hefty injury lists for this clash, with Bournemouth’s Luis Sinisterra and Stoke’s Junior Techamadeu both cup-tied for Wednesday’s encounter. On top of that, the Potters’ loanee Mark Travers can’t face his parent club.
Both teams are likely to rotate, with Bournemouth set to give minutes to the likes of David Brooks and Hamed Traore. As for Stoke, their top scorer Andre Vignal is expected to sit this one out.
Bournemouth to win & both teams to score @ 11/5
Bournemouth invested heavily back in January and they were busy again over the summer. That’s led to a pretty deep squad, which gives Iraola plenty of options to turn to on Wednesday.
In attack, Dango Ouattara, Hamed Traore and David Brooks are quality options to pit against a side like Stoke. Iraola made similar changes in the last round, leading his side to a 3-2 victory at Swansea.
Another victory should follow, with Stoke heading into this clash off the back of three defeats in four. The Potters lost 3-1 at home to Hull at the weekend, so Alex Neil’s reshuffled pack should struggle to stop a Premier League side.
The downside for Iraola so far is that he hasn’t been able to organise their backline. They’ve conceded 13 times already this term, so Stoke should be good value for a goal.
Marcos Senesi to score anytime @ 15/2
While Bournemouth are expected to rotate up top, Iraola kept his key men together in defence in the visit to Swansea. That could pay off for the Cherries at both ends of the pitch.
Stoke have the joint-worst record when it comes to defending set pieces in the Championship, conceding five goals from dead ball opportunities. That paves the way for some of Bournemouth’s significant set piece threats, including one who has yet to truly show what he can do.
In his final season with Feyenoord, Marcos Senesi averaged 0.6 shots per game from set pieces alone. He’s been a consistent threat from that area across his career, both in the Eredivisie and back in his native Argentina.
The centre-half scored twice for Bournemouth in the Premier League last term and against a side like Stoke, he could really shine.
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