Bournemouth lineup vs. Fulham: Predicted XI for Premier League clash as Evanilson chases milestone
Bournemouth striker Evanilson could join an exclusive club of Brazilian players in Monday’s Premier League showdown with Fulham at the Vitality Stadium.
The former Porto man struck his eighth and ninth goals of the top-flight campaign in last weekend’s 2-2 draw with West Ham United, and only three Brazilians have ever scored 10 or more goals in their first season of Premier League football.
Robinho (14 for Manchester City in 2008-09), Roberto Firmino (10 for Liverpool in 2015-16) and Matheus Pereira (11 for West Bromwich Albion in 2020-21) are the only Selecao stars to have achieved that feat previously, and Evanilson is guaranteed to lead the line on Monday in search of that milestone strike.
It remains to be seen who will make up Evanilson’s supporting cast, though, as all of Justin Kluivert, Marcus Tavernier and Luis Sinisterra are doubtful with injuries, but the former two have better chances of returning than Sinisterra.
As a result, the impactful Kluivert may be given the green light to take Alex Scott‘s place in the number 10 role, but Antoine Semenyo and Dango Ouattara – who netted an 89th-minute equaliser against Fulham in December – should continue out wide.
Midfield regular Ryan Christie has now undergone surgery on a chronic groin injury, so Tyler Adams and Lewis Cook will form the double pivot; the latter is now back in his more familiar position after a stint at right-back.
The fit-again Adam Smith now dons the captain’s armband from the right-back slot, as part of an untouched backline with Kepa Arrizabalaga, Ilya Zabarnyi and the in-demand Milos Kerkez and Dean Huijsen.
Bournemouth possible starting lineup:
Kepa; Smith, Zabarnyi, Huijsen, Kerkez; Adams, Cook; Semenyo, Kluivert, Ouattara; Evanilson
Andoni Iraola on ‘love’ for Ryan Christie after season-ending surgery
THERE has been ‘no secret’ in how highly the Cherries have rated Ryan Christie’s performances this season, as the Scot is set to miss the remainder of the season after having surgery.
Preview: Bournemouth vs. Fulham – prediction, team news, lineups
At risk of their worst-ever home losing run as a Premier League club, an out-of-sorts Bournemouth welcome Fulham to the Vitality Stadium for Monday night’s encounter.
The Cherries’ winless sequence continued in an engrossing 2-2 draw against West Ham United in gameweek 31, allowing the Cottagers to leapfrog them in the table with a shock 3-2 beating of Liverpool.
Andoni Iraola‘s men have now failed to win any of their last six games in England’s top division after a topsy-turvy affair with West Ham last weekend, where South American hotshot Evanilson both started and ended the scoring either side of Jarrod Bowen and Niclas Fullkrug‘s strikes.
Also mourning their dreams of FA Cup glory after their quarter-final elimination at the hands of Manchester City, a 2024-25 season that promised so much for Bournemouth could now end with the Cherries languishing in the bottom half of the Premier League table and dissecting their worst-ever home sequence in the top flight.
Indeed, Bournemouth have been beaten in each of their last four league matches at the Vitality Stadium and could now lose five on the spin for just the third time in their history after such streaks in 1996 and 2005, both of which came in the third tier of English football.
Bournemouth’s fleeting continental hopes were handed a boost in midweek when it was confirmed that the Premier League would receive an additional Champions League place via their UEFA coefficient, but the hosts’ defensive deficiencies are costing them dear, having shipped two goals in each of their last five matches in all tournaments.
As Iraola’s side struggle to showcase their European credentials, Fulham enhanced theirs by subjecting Liverpool to their first Premier League away loss of the season last weekend, recovering from an Alexis Mac Allister rocket to strike through Ryan Sessegnon, Alex Iwobi and Rodrigo Muniz at Craven Cottage.
A late Luis Diaz response proved futile as Marco Silva‘s men defied the odds to take down the champions-elect, the perfect tonic to back-to-back London derby losses to Crystal Palace (in the FA Cup) and Arsenal (in the Premier League) as they took themselves to within touching distance of the top seven.
