Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola has been speaking to the media before Sunday’s Premier League game against Nottingham Forest at the Vitality Stadium (kick-off 14:00 GMT).
Here are the key lines from his news conference:
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Iraola confirmed striker Evanilson is “definitely out” for Forest’s visit, adding: “He is not far, not ready for Sunday but I hope he is ready for the next one (Man City next week).”
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He gave further injury updates, explaining: “Brooksy has been training with us for a few days, I hope he will be available. I don’t think we will recover Julio because he was with the Under-20s with Argentina and played the final.”
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Alternative striker option Enes Unal returned from a serious knee injury to play 45 minutes for the development squad this week and is “training fully”.
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Iraola said “it is a big boost for Unal personally” but played down the Turkish international’s chances of making the bench, saying that places in the squad are “not cheap”, amid a near-clean bill of health.
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On praise for last weekend’s goal-scorer Eli Junior Kroupi: “Junior has also been among the goals. It’s about establishing himself in the Premier League. We are asking a lot from him to make the big jump from France’s second division.”
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On Bournemouth being third in the Premier League: “It is obviously positive stats but it is just the start of the season. The standings are almost an anecdote, it is not significant. I value how we are competing in every game and are efficient but it is too early. A few defeats and it is a little bit different.”
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Asked about facing Sean Dyche, Iraola added: “We don’t have a lot of references. The game last night against Porto was the best reference we have. Straight away, you can see it is his team.”
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He continued about Forest: “They changed players and system so it is difficult to prepare. We know the players Forest have and how a Sean Dyche team prepares and competes.”
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Iraola also admitted: “Dan Ndoye is a player we were following and I think he is a great signing.”
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Lastly, the Basque manager was asked about the nine goal involvements from star attacker Antoine Semenyo: “Antoine is someone who accepts well our criticism and we tell him not to stop here, not to focus only on your numbers.”
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Adding more on Semenyo’s other strengths, Iraola said: “Even the other day, Junior Kroupi scores but he was the first one to flick it or arrive. He has added aerial power to his game and defensively, he is honest and disciplined. This improves the package and he is not just what you see in the highlights. I think there are still areas he knows he has to improve and get better.”
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