Town suffered more away day disappointment after losing 4-0 to Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium. There were some promising signs for Town in the early stages but it was a very disappointing performance, particularly our inability to score despite playing against 10 men for 45 minutes.
Here are my player ratings from the game:
Jonas Lössl – 6 out of 10
Not at fault for any of the goals, as far as I could see. His distribution wasn’t up to his usual standard though and he looked flustered when Bournemouth players closed him down.
Florent Hadergjonaj – 6 out of 10
Not a bad performance, made a lot of runs down the right but didn’t create any chances. His crossing wasn’t great, and he’s still building up an understanding with Kachunga. One thing I like about him is that his pace means he can get away with some slightly dodgy positioning, so he’s capable of getting further forward but can still get back to defend.
Zanka – 7 out of 10
I thought he led the defence well in Schindler’s absence. Was often left on his own at the back after Cranie’s substitution. Made some good tackles headers.
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Martin Cranie – 6 out of 10
Did a pretty good job of filling Christopher Schindler’s shoes for the game. He’s not as commanding a presence at the back but he showed that he’s a safe pair of hands if we need cover at the back.
Scott Malone – 4 out of 10
Made some good runs and looked positive, nearly scoring with a toe poke early in the game, which went wide.
He was to blame for the third goal, running straight into trouble and gifting Arter the ball. At 2-0 down against ten men, we had a chance, but the third goal killed off the game. Would probably be a 7 without that blunder but it was a silly mistake and it cost us.
Danny Williams – 5 out of 10
Given a more defensive midfield role, meaning he would sit deep when we had possession and wasn’t able to make his trademark surging runs forward. Didn’t provide the defence with the same kind of cover that Hogg usually does.
Aaron Mooy – 6 out of 10
A poor performance by Mooy’s standards but he still does a lot of the work carrying the ball forward and starting off attacks. His set pieces and crossing in open play were poor, and that cost the team. In retrospect, it might not have been a good choice to play him from the start after the big games and travel during the international break.
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Elias Kachunga – 5 out of 10
I really like Kachunga, but he had another game where he struggled to be a creative force. His work-rate is good and he’s trying to do the right things, but it’s not coming off. I noticed him making a few of those runs into the box when Flo was carrying the ball up the wing. That kind of movement what how he scored so many goals last season, I hope he can get back to that sort of form.
Tom Ince – 5 out of 10
Looked frustrated at times, and struggled to make a positive difference when we attacked. I think we’ll see the best of him when he’s played on the right-wing, but that may have to wait until Palmer’s fit again.
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Rajiv van La Parra – 6 out of 10
Looked positive and very confident, he was probably our most creative player in the first-half. Sadly he was a bit wasteful with the ball at times, lashing shots high and wide. I would still rate him as one of our most improved players this season though, but it didn’t come off for him at Bournemouth.
Laurent Depoitre – 5 out of 10
The usual hustle and bustle but he didn’t look like scoring at any point. There was a nice back heel across the face of goal, but it went harmlessly to a Bournemouth defender.
Substitutes
Mounié – 5 out of 10
He was given a full 45-minutes to prove his fitness and he didn’t make much of an impact. His body language around the pitch didn’t look great either. Early in the season he looked like a coiled spring whenever the ball came near him. At Bournemouth, he looked frustrated and didn’t have that same spring in his step.
Sabiri – 5 out of 10
Brought on to try and add some creativity to the team, but didn’t do anything much at all. I can barely remember seeing an incisive pass from him, never mind a chance created. There wasn’t a lot of space to get on the ball in the final third and I think he struggled with this.
Quaner – 6 out of 10
Looked lively down the right and tried to influence the game with his runs. Sadly it didn’t come to much, but at least he was trying to create something. Great to see him back on the pitch again after injury.