Iraola believes Wolves' overall strength has changed

"Cherries" Bournemouth will host Wolves at home in the 26th round of the 2024/25 Premier League. Coach Andoni Iraola said that Wolves have become different under the coaching of Vitor Pereira, especially the defensive performance has been significantly improved.

With goals from Dango Ouattara, Ryan Christie and Tavernier, Bournemouth beat newly promoted Southampton 3-1 away in the last round of the Premier League. After 3 wins, 1 draw and 1 loss in the last 5 rounds, Bournemouth is currently ranked 5th in the standings with 43 points, continuing its journey to qualify for Europe.

As for Wolves, Vitor Pereira's team is currently ranked 17th in the standings with 19 points. Although they lost 1-2 to Liverpool in the last round of the league, they defeated the strong Aston Villa 2-0 at home before, and successfully advanced to the round of 16 of the FA Cup earlier.

When talking about the Wolves team they are about to face, Bournemouth coach Andoni Iraola said, "Their tactical system has basically not changed, and they still maintain a similar structure. The overall tactical difference is not big, but after all, they have changed coaches. I think they now let the wingbacks stand further forward, which gives wing players such as Semedo, Ait Nouri and Rodrigo Gomez more freedom. They still have the previous offensive threat, but the biggest change may be the improvement in defensive stability."

"I think they've improved their chances a lot and even their set-piece defending a lot. Considering the games they've played recently, they've done a really good job defensively."

Andoni Iraola also said, "If you analyze their past eight games, they basically played against teams at the top of the standings, but they were competitive in every game. So, I expect this round to be a very difficult game. They have excellent players, especially their recent defensive data and the goals they conceded against strong teams, you will find that their defense is very strong and stable."

It is worth mentioning that Bournemouth's opponent in the FA Cup round of 16 is Wolves. Antonio Iraola said, "I am currently only focusing on the Premier League games and not thinking about the cup games. Although the interval between the two games is not long, it will not affect this round of games."