Alright so last night I was thinking about Bournemouth’s next Premier League match against Liverpool. Everyone expects them to get smashed right? But I thought hey maybe they can pull off something if they set up smart. So I brewed some coffee around 11 PM and opened my Football Manager save where I manage Bournemouth.
First I pulled up Liverpool’s recent match footage on my tablet – all those games where teams actually gave them trouble. Nottingham Forest held them 1-1 last season by sitting really deep. Crystal Palace too. So I thought okay Bournemouth should park the bus basically.
Grabbed my notebook and scribbled down Bournemouth’s squad. Neto in goal obviously. Then I drew three lines for defenders – decided on a 5-4-1 shape because why not? Put Zabarnyi and Kelly as wide center-backs since they’re quick enough to chase Salah and Diaz. Mepham in the middle for aerial stuff.
Figuring Out The Messy Midfield
Now midfield was tricky. Liverpool’s midfielders press like crazy so I picked Cook and Christie because they run all day. Tavernier on left wing to help defend against Alexander-Arnold. Then I got stuck for 20 minutes about who to put on right wing.
Looked through player stats – Anthony hasn’t been great but Brooks might get steamrolled physically. Finally settled on Semenyo just because he’s fast and can chase back. Might boot long balls to Solanke up front and hope he holds it up.
The Scary Part: Set Pieces
Liverpool are giants at corners! Bournemouth’s pretty short so I spent ages setting zonal marking with everyone back. Made Solanke stay forward just in case we get a lucky break. Set Travers as sweeper keeper too because Alisson loves playing long passes.
Around 1 AM I tested this in Football Manager. First attempt – Liverpool scored in 15 minutes because Christie got caught. Reloaded and changed his instructions to ‘stay back’. Second try we actually drew 0-0! But then they scored two quick goals in extra time. Classic.
Final setup looked like:
- GK: Neto
- Back 3: Zabarnyi – Mepham – Kelly
- Wingbacks: Aarons – Kerkez
- Midfield: Tavernier – Cook – Christie – Semenyo
- Lone striker: Solanke
Honestly feels like plugging holes on a sinking ship. Bournemouth just lack quality to handle Liverpool’s press. Best hope is defending like crazy and nicking a set piece. Might try this setup against my mate’s Liverpool team in FIFA later – probably get smashed 4-0 again but worth a shot!
