Bournemouth

Matthew Hobbs
BBC Sport journalist

Arsenal continue their title challenge with a trip to face a Bournemouth side who have not won any of their past 10 Premier League matches.

BBC Sport examines some of the key themes ahead of Saturday's meeting at the Vitality Stadium (17:30 GMT).

Bournemouth's unwanted record

Bournemouth begin the new year facing the league leaders on their longest winless run in a single campaign in the club's top-flight history.

The Cherries have failed to win any of their past 10 league fixtures and, although Andoni Iraola's side came from behind to earn a point at Stamford Bridge last time out, they start 2026 in 15th position in the table having won just five matches so far this season.

Such a downturn in form is perhaps not entirely unexpected for a club who sold 10 players last summer, including three of Bournemouth's preferred back four, at a trading profit of just over £81m.

The south coast club's recruitment has generally been impeccable, although selling your best players on a consistent basis is a strategy likely to come unstuck eventually – and the next departure on that list looks almost certain to be Antoine Semenyo.

The star winger has a £65m release clause in his contract that has become active in the January transfer window, and the home meeting with Arsenal could be his final swansong before leaving Bournemouth – with Manchester City reportedly in negotiations for his services.

Should Semenyo depart as expected this month, a struggling side will be deprived of a key operator at a critical juncture of the season.

Arsenal's good form continues

Bournemouth did the league double over Arsenal in 2024-25 but there are long odds of repeating last season's triumph at the Vitality Stadium, against a visiting side who have lost only once in their past 16 league outings.

Arsenal's 4-1 win against in-form Aston Villa may prove to be a pivotal moment come the end of the season and Manchester City's goalless draw at Sunderland on Thursday evening means that the Gunners ended New Year's Day with a four-point lead at the top of the table.

The title race, however, remains very much alive, according to recent history. This is the sixth time that Arsenal have topped the Premier League table by the end of New Year's Day and in all five previous instances, they failed to win the title.

After games had ended on 1 January 2023, Mikel Arteta's side led by seven points (albeit having played three games fewer) and went on to finish second, five points behind Manchester City.

Arsenal, though, remain tough to beat and ultimately thrashed a Villa side who had won their previous 11 matches in all competitions – despite missing captain Declan Rice due to injury.

Former Premier League forward Clinton Morrison subsequently called Arsenal's squad depth "an absolute joke", referencing the impact of Gabriel Jesus as a substitute since his return from a lengthy injury lay-off in December.

Arsenal can also afford to bolster their numbers in January, with the club "actively looking" at new signings – which could be an ominous prospect for their title rivals.

Nat Hayward
BBC Sport journalist

Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola has been speaking to the media before Saturday's Premier League game against Arsenal at Vitality Stadium (17:30 GMT).

Here are the key lines from his news conference, which was dominated by questions surrounding the future of Antoine Semenyo, who is close to a move to Manchester City.

• Ryan Christie will not be available for the visit of the league leaders, while Lewis Cook's fitness will be assessed and a late call made on his involvement .

• Iraola was asked if Semenyo will be involved on Saturday: "Yes, Antoine is going to play in this match."

• On whether it will be the forward's last match for Bournemouth: "No, no. I think the idea at least is that he's going to be available for these two games that we have in a very short turnaround. I hope he can be here more time but I don't know what is going to happen."

• When asked again if the Arsenal game will be his farewell, Iraola added: "No, that is not the idea. When the market is open you never know what is going to happen because you cannot control these things, but if you ask me right now, I don't think so."

• On a deal being agreed: "No, there is nothing signed. For sure, there are conversations and I understand a lot of the noise around, but there is nothing signed. Antoine is our player. We want to keep him. He is playing very well and doing the right things. He is a top professional, a top guy. He wants to help the team and his team-mates and I have no doubts that he will do his best. I have no doubts with him... He is being a top professional and I'm sure he will be until the last day."

• Asked about Julian Araujo, who has joined Celtic on loan, Iraola said the defender needs "more consistent minutes to recover his form" and that he hopes he "can do well and come back in the summer to fight for the position".

• Iraola said he was "surprised" Enzo Maresca left Chelsea after they drew with the Cherries midweek. Asked what he would say if the Blues approached him about the job, the Spaniard replied that he is "very happy" where he is, adding: "My issues is not about these things. I want to improve the situation we have right now in this run."

• On Saturday's opponents: "It is not going to be easy. They are the best team in the league defensively and there is a reason they are top of the league."

Listen to what Andoni Iraola said here

Follow all of Friday's Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

Listen to live commentary of Bournemouth v Arsenal on Saturday from 17:30 GMT on BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Sounds

Nicola Pearson
BBC Sport journalist

A normal Premier League season may run from August to May, but what happens if we stop the table now? What if it was only what happened in 2025 that counted?

With the calendar flicking over to 2026, this is the ideal time to check back on which teams have had an enjoyable 12 months and see who had a year to forget.

The top five is an accurate reflection of this season's top five (although it should be noted not all teams have played the same number of games).

Arsenal have led the way this campaign and, after coming up short last season, they will be striving to go one better to finally secure an elusive first Premier League trophy since 2004.

If looking just at the past 12 months, the title would be theirs, despite a number of draws early in 2025.

Having gone through their worst run of form under Pep Guardiola late in 2024 and early into 2025, alongside their initial poor start to this season, it may be surprising to find Manchester City so close at the top.

But a feature of this City side under Guardiola is their ability to recover from less than impressive starts and go on winning streaks - they are currently on a run of six wins in the league.

Aston Villa fans can look also back fondly on 2025, having experienced the return of Champions League football, secured more European football again this term and found themselves in a battle for the Premier League trophy.

They may have had a slow start this season but their general consistency in 2025 and a club record-equalling run of 11 straight wins in the final weeks catapults them into the top three.

Having won the title with ease last season, Liverpool fans can still revel in that achievement. But a drop-off at the end of 2024-25 and a poor run this time around leaves them fourth for the year.

Meanwhile, Chelsea made progress in 2025 under Enzo Maresca, with Champions League football and two bits of silverware, but a lack of consistency in a young team prevents them ascending higher than fifth.

When looking at the next five, there are perhaps some surprises.

With their FA Cup win, 2025 will go down in Crystal Palace's history, and their Premier League form has not been too shabby either as they compete with the teams that have occupied Champions League spots in recent seasons.

No Thomas Frank, Bryan Mbeumo or Yoane Wissa? No problem for Brentford. They may have had a summer of upheaval but that has not stopped the Bees buzzing as they continue to perform above expectations.

After a few years of struggles on and off the pitch, 2025 seems to be the one Everton fans can finally start to look up rather than down with the new stadium and return of David Moyes bringing much-needed stability.

Newcastle may have had a few ups and downs, but they have come good when needed and hold their own in the top six, while Brighton continue to establish themselves firmly in the top 10.

Find out how the bottom half of the table shapes up on the post below

Now, what about those who may have had a less enjoyable 2025?

Manchester United continue to try to find their feet under Ruben Amorim. And while there have been glimmers of progress in recent weeks, a torrid first half of the year has left them with much room for improvement (and a draw with Wolves to end 2025 only added to the questions).

Bournemouth and Fulham both seem to have found consistency in their ability to be inconsistent.

There have been bursts of form from both, but also bouts of disappointment they might rather forget.

As for Nottingham Forest, 2025 may have been the year they returned to Europe for the first time in nearly three decades, but when it came to results in the league, particularly this season, it has been more of one to forget.

Under their third head coach of the season, they will hope 2026 does not bring the return of Championship football.

Like Forest, Tottenham's 12 months has been memorable for both the good and the bad.

A first trophy in 17 years was secured in the Europa League, but it has been far from impressive in the Premier League, managing just 11 wins from 37 matches and some pressure already building on boss Thomas Frank.

One of the most notable things about the bottom end of the calendar year table is the presence of all three promoted teams, despite two of the three having played a game less than the relegated clubs of last season.

With Leeds nine points better off and Sunderland 17, it highlights the disparity in how well this year's promoted sides have done in comparison to the previous three.

For the Black Cats, it has been a dream return to the top flight, including a recent win over Tyne-Wear rivals Newcastle, and in this season's table they find themselves just two points off fifth.

After overcoming a difficult patch, Leeds are also enjoying their return to the top table, slowly pulling themselves away from the danger spots.

It has been more of a struggle for Scott Parker's Burnley, but they will not lose hope with still half a campaign to go.

After recent successes with European football, domestically things have become a harder watch for West Ham supporters as they struggle to find the balance between good football and much-needed results

Then there is Wolves - and fans may want to look away.

Despite playing 20 Premier League games more, the West Midlands side accumulated only one point more than Sunderland across the year.

A win this term still eludes them and safety in 2026 appears a distant dream.

Check out how the top half of the table looked in the post above

Mark Mitchener
BBC Sport senior journalist

Image source, Getty Images

As 2026 dawns, the drawn-out saga of Antoine Semenyo's exit from Bournemouth seems finally close to its conclusion.

With a proposed £65m move to Manchester City having moved from "talks" to "advanced talks" (with, no doubt, "final talks" to come), Semenyo's body language after the final whistle of Tuesday's 2-2 draw at Chelsea, hugging team-mates and applauding the away fans, was that of a man saying goodbye.

However, Cherries boss Andoni Iraola's post-match interviews indicated he did not believe it was Semenyo's final game, and that he expected him to feature against Arsenal at Vitality Stadium on Saturday.

Indeed, might it even be in City's broader interests for Semenyo to help Bournemouth take a point or two off the Gunners, who are City's main rivals for the Premier League title, before finalising his move?

Thankfully for all parties, Semenyo avoided picking up a fifth yellow card of the season at Stamford Bridge, having walked a disciplinary tightrope for the past three games.

A fifth caution would have ruled him out of the next round of matches, whichever shirt he wears – but having reached the 19-game mark safely, players are now safe from suspension unless they rack up 10 bookings in their first 32 league games.

An even more impressive high-wire act has come from Bournemouth defender Alex Jimenez, booked on his first three appearances after joining on loan from AC Milan, but only collecting one yellow card in his next 12 outings so he, too, has evaded a ban.

Bournemouth are one of multiple Premier League clubs to express interest in Arsenal's 18-year-old forward Ethan Nwaneri. (Mail), external

Celtic are in talks with Bournemouth over a loan deal for Julian Araujo and want to have the defender available for their meeting with Rangers on 3 January. (Daily Record), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Thursday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

Tom Jordan
Fan writer

Image source, Getty Images

Best memory and why

The 2-1 away win at Arsenal back in May felt massive. We had never won at Emirates Stadium and having beaten them earlier in the season at home, this meant we claimed our first double over the Gunners. We were behind at the break, so to turn this game around felt like a truly special moment.

Worst moment and why

It was a successful season for the Cherries, but our home defeat to soon-to-be-relegated Ipswich was a low moment. Our dreams of pushing for a spot in Europe felt like they all but ended that day.

If I could drink a New Year's brew with one member of our squad/management it would be...

Our stalwart at the back, Adam Smith. His first spell at the club was back in 2010 so to still be here coming into 2026 would mean he would certainly have plenty of stories. Discussing our incredible rise through the lower leagues and how he adapted to being a Premier League regular would be fascinating.

The thing that's infuriated me in 2025 is…

As much as us Bournemouth fans have to somewhat accept where we are in the football food chain, the transfer windows have been frustrating to say the least. We lost four of last season's back five in the summer, meaning progression was always going to be a tall order. Prior to that in the January of 2025, we were decimated by injuries yet still sat in the top five! Despite that, we opted not to strengthen the squad and it still feels like a missed opportunity.

My gut tells me 2026 will bring...

Honestly, an awful lot of uncertainty. Our head coach's contract expires at the end of the season and we anticipate losing many more of our key players. The "stepping stone" vibe around the club means uncertainty and squad turnover feels inevitable.

Find more from Tom Jordan at Back of the Net, external

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Antoine Semenyo could be a Manchester City player as early as the weekend, according to Bournemouth Echo senior journalist Alexander Smith.

City have agreed to meet Semenyo's £65m release clause and talks between the clubs have been progressing this week with the transfer window opening on 1 January.

Before the Chelsea match on Tuesday, Smith told BBC Radio Manchester: "I think if the club get their negotiations right, he might be around for the weekend [against Arsenal] but to be honest I'm not optimistic of that. I think this is his last appearance in a Cherries shirt."

After the draw at Stamford Bridge however, manager Andoni Iraola said that it was "definitely not" the winger's last game.

"I think Antoine seems quite keen to get it sorted early which I guess is understandable, " Smith said. "In some ways, it suits Bournemouth to get the money in so they can look at replacements nice and early to hopefully get players through the door as soon as possible.

"But obviously there's a balance to be found between bringing in and letting him go early or keeping him for another couple of games where he might score a couple of goals and win them a point or two.

"If he was looking for purely game time, Man Utd were probably the best possible option but if he's looking at trophies, City would be the move. I also thought Liverpool was a sensible move as they start looking at succession planning for Mohamed Salah but it seems that he's settled on City."

Listen to the full chat on BBC Sounds

Manchester City's Norway winger Oscar Bobb could join Borussia Dortmund on loan until the end of the season, while Bournemouth, Crystal Palace and Newcastle are among the clubs also interested in the 22-year-old. (Mail - subscription required), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Wednesday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live: "We all wanted to play a lot better and to forget this [first] 45 minutes against Brentford and finish proud of the performance whatever the result.

"The reward is not massive, at the end it is a draw and one point, but we have to be humble in this moment when everything is costing us a lot. Take the point and go slowly, slowly, keep growing in our performances and keep persisting.

"It is a great chance to have. Enes [Unal] has done very well and gave us this energy that we were probably lacking in the last part of the game. I think they've had more of the ball but we had better chances. I'm not fully satisfied with 2-2 to be honest."

On Antoine Semenyo's future: "I don't know what is going to happen but will definitely play [v Arsenal]. This is not his last game."

Nizaar Kinsella
Football reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Antoine Semenyo showed Chelsea - who briefly explored signing him - what they will miss, and offered Manchester City a glimpse of what is to come.

His first touch was a shimmy past Josh Acheampong and Estevao Willian before delivering a dangerous in-swinging cross in the fourth minute.

Three minutes later, his long throw-in opened the scoring, and he later repeated the feat to set up another.

There was much more to his game though. In an end-to-end contest, Semenyo's physicality was crucial at both ends, and he featured prominently in counter-attacks that helped Bournemouth create numerous chances in the first half.

It also highlighted something harder to quantify: Semenyo's professionalism and commitment.

He could have eased off to avoid injury before his move, but instead he threw himself into defensive duties, clearing multiple aerial balls in the second half.

Near the end, he was waiting for a long ball that Reece James intercepted as Bournemouth looked to soak up pressure while still using their star as an outlet.

It explains why not only City, but also Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool, Tottenham and Arsenal have all shown interest in him over the past 12 months.

When City manager Pep Guardiola reviews this footage, he will like what he sees - and Semenyo can leave Bournemouth having demonstrated total commitment to the end.

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on Chelsea's performance

What did you make of Bournemouth's display?

Come back on Wednesday for a selection of your replies

Chelsea change about half the team who lost 2-1 at home to Aston Villa. Marc Cucurella was an injury doubt, and he misses out - with the Blues changing three of their back four. Liam Delap and Estevao replace Joao Pedro and Pedro Neto further up the field.

Chelsea XI: Sanchez, Gusto, Fofana, Chalobah, Acheampong, Caicedo, Fernandez, Palmer, Estevao, Garnacho, Delap.

Subs: Jorgensen, Adarabioyo, Badiashile, Neto, Gittens, Santos, Pedro, James, Buonanotte.

Bournemouth make six changes after their 4-1 loss at Brentford. Among them are Evanilson replacing Junior Kroupi up front.

Bournemouth XI: Petrovic, Truffert, Senesi, Hill, Jimenez, Scott, Brooks, Tavernier, Semenyo, Kluivert, Evanilson.

Subs: Dennis, Araujo, Soler, Smith, Diakite, Adli, Kroupi, Unal, Rees-Dottin.

Pat Nevin
BBC Sport pundit and former footballer

Image source, Getty Images

With Aston Villa, Manchester City and Arsenal scraping 2-1 wins on Saturday, there is clear blue water between them and the chasing pack.

But those tight scorelines show that the gap between possible glory and being "nearly men" is wafer-thin.

‌The difference at the bottom is starker. Burnley and especially Wolves would already need a series of miracles to survive and West Ham are slipping closer to that position too. It is hard to see who the Hammers can catch, even with a decent upturn in form.

‌Everton have an eight-point advantage, though they are very light in numbers with Afcon and injuries seriously depleting the squad. Nottingham Forest look too good to go down, likewise Leeds with their current impressive upturn in form and results.

Amazing though it sounds, the team that could be in most peril is Bournemouth.

‌They could lose Antoine Semenyo in the transfer window for £65m and if they do not reinvest it wisely and quickly, they could be in trouble.

‌This is incredible considering their excellent start: by match nine in October they were flying high in second place. Now at match 18, having picked up only four points from the next 27 available, they are in a tailspin.

‌After coping well initially, selling just about their entire backline last summer is beginning to look like a kamikaze move.

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Henry Cowling
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

The festive period is decision time over who gets presents in their stocking and who gets a big lump of coal. Some Premier League players may find themselves in the latter category given their disciplinary record across 2025.

One player with the joint-most fouls across the year is a name many probably would not have expected – Bournemouth winger Antoine Semenyo.

Semenyo finds himself at the top of the rankings with 70 fouls committed in the Premier League in 2025, level with Sasa Lukic. The Fulham player is joined on the list by fellow combative midfielders Bruno Guimaraes, Joao Gomes and Moises Caicedo.

It is Chelsea's Caicedo who has the most yellow cards in the Premier League in 2025, with 11.

Lukic, Lucas Paqueta, Tyler Adams, Elliot Anderson and Andre all reached double figures across the year with 10 apiece.

At the other end of the spectrum, Tino Livramento is top of the 'nice' list among regular starters. The full-back has committed just seven fouls across 2025 in the Premier League, four fewer then second-placed Alex Iwobi.

Sophie Brown
BBC Sport journalist

Chelsea host Bournemouth at Stamford Bridge, with the Blues aiming to beef up their home form, while the Cherries are just hoping to find any sort of form.

The Premier League campaign is about to hit the halfway mark but it must feel a lot further on than that for Chelsea's players, whose off-season was massively shortened thanks to the Club World Cup campaign in June and July.

That summer action saw them crowned world champions but getting their hands on the domestic equivalent already looks as if it will have to wait for another season.

Chelsea are fifth but lie 13 points behind Arsenal, and have six points fewer than they did at this stage of last season.

Home form has been costing them, and the defeat at Stamford Bridge by Aston Villa at the weekend – which came despite them dominating the visitors for the first hour – means Chelsea have already lost three home league games this season, having only lost two in the whole of 2024-25.

In all three, they have gone 1-0 up - a worrying trend for the Blues, who have dropped 11 points from winning positions at home this season, which is more than any other side.

In fact, it is twice as many as the majority of top-flight clubs. Perhaps most tellingly, the four clubs above them in the table – Arsenal, Manchester City, Aston Villa and Liverpool – have not dropped any.

The Blues will possibly be relieved that Tuesday's visitors are out-of-form Bournemouth, who are winless in their past nine league matches (D4, L5), and without a victory in their past eight games against Chelsea (D4, L4).

To add to the Cherries' current woes is the expected impeding departure of top scorer Antoine Semenyo, who is set to leave the club in the new year. Only two players have scored more goals in the Premier League this season than the Ghana international, who has found the net in his past three matches.

Semenyo could join an elite group should he score at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday evening.

Only three players have previously scored away at Liverpool, Manchester United and Chelsea in the same Premier League campaign. Semenyo has already scored at Anfield and Old Trafford in this season's top flight and will match Kevin Nolan (2001-02), Gabriel Agbonlahor (2006-07) and Robin van Persie (2011-12) with a goal at the Bridge that may be his last hurrah for Bournemouth.

Chelsea are fifth but they are on a sticky run at the moment, with only one win in six league games.

When they got their draw with 10 men against Arsenal at the end of November, I thought they were in the title race but they have completely fallen away.

However, Bournemouth's poor run of results goes back even further. After climbing to second place at the end of October, they haven't won any of their past nine matches.

It is a concerning time for their manager Andoni Iraola because this might be Antoine Semenyo's last game for the Cherries. Maybe losing three of their first-choice defenders in the summer - Dean Huijsen to Real Madrid, Milos Kerkez to Liverpool and Illia Zabarnyi to Paris St-Germain is catching up with them too.

I'm not sure what is going wrong for the Cherries because they are still so aggressive in the way they press and play, but they are conceding a lot of goals and Brentford played right through them in the first half at the weekend.

It is only because West Ham have been so rotten that Bournemouth are still nine points clear of the relegation zone. I still always think Iraola's side will score, but I'm backing Enzo Maresca's side to win the battle of two very patchy teams.

Sutton's prediction: 2-1

Read the full predictions and have your say here

Bournemouth see Tottenham's 24-year-old Wales forward Brennan Johnson as a potential replacement for Antoine Semenyo, 25, if the Ghana forward leaves the club in January. (Sky Sports, external)

However, they face competition from Crystal Palace, who are plotting a £35m bid for the Europa League winner. (Mail, external)

The Cherries are also interested in Leicester City's 21-year-old Ghana winger Abdul Fatawu, who has previously been linked to Crystal Palace, Everton and Sunderland. (Mail, external)

Finally, Barcelona want to sign Bournemouth's 28-year-old Argentina defender Marcos Senesi on a free transfer next summer. (Sport - in Spanish, external)

Want more transfer stories? Read Tuesday's full gossip column

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