Manchester City Opponent Primer: AFC Bournemouth

City are off and running in the Premier League after taking all three points away to West Ham United. It was a lovely day in London for Pep Guardiola’s men, and now they return home to the Etihad for the home debut of Erling Haaland, Julian Alvarez, Kalvin Phillips, and Stefan Ortega Moreno. The last time we saw City at home, they were completing a furious comeback against Aston Villa to lift the PL trophy in the Manchester sun. Up next for the Champions are AFC Bournemouth.

Newly promoted Bournemouth are coming off a 2-0 victory over Aston Villa in Matchweek 1. The Cherries had spent the previous two seasons in the Championship. Now back in the top flight, Bournemouth are eager to stay up, and off to a good start.

The last time City faced Bournemouth was in September 2020 in the third round of the Carabao Cup. The Cherries were eliminated by a 2-1 tally at the Etihad on the strength of goals from Liam Delap (18’), and Phil Foden (75’). The last Premier League matchup between the two sides was two months prior in July 2020 in an empty City of Manchester Stadium. The Sky Blues won by an identical 2-1 score with the goals coming from David Silva (6’) and Gabriel Jesus (39’).

City are off to a hot start of their own after dispatching the Hammers 2-0 on the strength of a Haaland brace. It figures to be a major test for AFC Bournemouth. If they can stay with the Champions it could mean a major boost for the squad’s confidence in their push to stay up.

The match kicks off at 3:00pm local time in Manchester and 10:00am Eastern.