Newcastle were the in-form team in the Premier League heading into last weekend before Bournemouth dispatched them 4-1 at St James’ Park. Andoni Iraola’s side are now seventh amid a 10-game unbeaten run — a club record in the top flight.
So are the Cherries now serious contenders for European qualification? And how has Iraola got his team to consistently punch above their weight?
On the latest episode of The Athletic FC Podcast, host Ayo Akinwolere was joined by Jon Mackenzie, Phil Hay and Dermot Corrigan to discuss whether Iraola will be the name on everyone’s lips should a so-called ‘bigger’ job vacancy come up.
A partial transcript has been edited for this article. The full episode is available on The Athletic FC Podcast feed on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
Ayo: One of the most impressive things about Iraola is how he’s bounced back from his awful start, just three points from their first nine league matches. Phil, it’s pretty impressive how he turned that around.
Phil: That feels like it never happened. That period feels so long ago now that you can’t remember the point where everybody was saying ‘bad decision’. When Gary O’Neil was replaced by Iraola, there was something that felt typically British to me. This thing of: “Gary O’Neil’s a good man, who’s done a good job and deserves a bit more courtesy and respect.”
But Bournemouth stuck to their guns and went for Iraola and it’s worked incredibly well. There’s no bluff involved in this. Iraola knows exactly what he wants to do. It isn’t going to work all the time (and) the high press isn’t 100 per cent perfect. But I was joking in the The Athletic FC newsletter saying when it does work, it’s like an Alcatraz that Sean Connery couldn’t get out of.
Ayo: Jon, do you see Iraola becoming one of the next big coaches if he goes to a bigger club?
Jon: This is an interesting topic (because) Iraola relies on outlier advantage, whereby he tries to destabilise what the opposition is doing. That’s a perfectly adequate approach to take in a league where you’re a mid-table squad because a lot of the time you’re going to be without the ball. The problem is when you’re ahead in games you want to make sure that you have more of the ball.
Throughout Iraola’s time at Bournemouth, they’ve often lost winning positions because they’ve struggled to control those games. Now, if you throw a manager like that into an elite club, suddenly that changes the dynamics entirely because you are expected to be in control of games more.
This is the big question with Iraola. What happens when you give him better players so his teams can possess the ball better? The more you possess the ball, the more you lose your upside as an out-of-possession team. We’ve seen Arsenal this season has been an elite team who’ve leaned into the out-of-possession things and it’s a problem. So I think that’s the big question with Iraola. If he makes that step up to coaching elite sides, how does he negotiate that change? That’s why I think a stepping stone club, like a move to Spurs (is better) so that you’re on the way to that elite level.
Ayo: Don’t get tongues wagging. Not now, Jon.
Jon: That’s what needs to happen. Jurgen Klopp had his Dortmund spell and that allowed him to make that evolution from one style to another. That prepared him for Liverpool and that’s the same sort of thing that Iraola needs.
Phil: Mackenzie calls Spurs ‘stepping-stone club’. Love it.
You can listen to full episodes of The Athletic FC Podcast for free on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
(Top Photo: Robin Jones/AFC Bournemouth via Getty Images)
