
Following a midweek win against Tottenham Hotspur,, AFC Bournemouth made it two wins on the trot as Dango Ouattara struck late to defeat Ipswich.
Bournemouth went down early to Kieran McKenna's side through Conor Chaplin with Ipswich frustrating the away side, planting eleven men behind the ball.
Andoni Iraola's side were behind for 66 minutes until a triple change and Enes Unal ignited a late Cherries comeback that saw the south coast travellers secure all three points.
The Spaniard's side now sit in 8th place in the Premier League table, just three points away from the Champions League and Manchester City.
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The late, late show for Bournemouth
In a performance that was not vintage Bournemouth, you cannot doubt Iraola's side late on this season as they secured another last-gasp win.
After going down early on, the Cherries were gifted large spells of the ball by the home side, attempting to break down Ipswich's defensive shape.
McKenna's side's deep and rigid shape restricted the away side's usual ability to press, forcing Iraola to make a triple change of Unal, Phillip Billing, and Ouattara.
It was this trio who would then change the game for the Cherries; Billing being involved in both goals, while Unal and Ouattara got the all-important touches to put the ball in the net.
Although a miraculous and dramatic late comeback, Bournemouth have scored 39% of their goals between the 76-90th minute. On the other hand, the Cherries have also scored four goals against Everton, Aston Villa and now Ipswich to gain points.
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Marcus Tavernier's struggles
Bournemouth's 25-year-old winger Marcus Tavernier has had an up-and-down start to the season for the Cherries.
This season, Tavernier has one goal and four assists in 15 Premier League appearances.
The winger has been heavily utilised by Iraola due to his energetic press and corner delivery. However, Tavernier has also come into recent criticism due to being sloppy on the ball and in front of goals at times.
At Portman Road, Tavernier came close to putting Bournemouth in front, as he marginally missed Milos Kerkez's ball across goal, before also coming close to an equaliser by hitting the woodwork.
Despite coming close to scoring, the former Middlesborough man failed to impact the game. Tavernier had a 0% success rate for successful dribbles and crosses, also winning 20% of his duels.
With struggling West Ham and Crystal Palace in the upcoming fixtures, Tavernier will hope to get back onto the scoresheet and back to his best in red and black.
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A killer's touch required up-front?
While league standings may not be decided by statistics, Iraola's Bournemouth currently sit second in the Premier League for xG and 3rd for xPts.
In their last three fixtures, the Cherries have been powered by creativity, scoring seven goals. However, despite the impressive return, Iraola's side have under-performed by three goals, creating 10 xG.
Tavernier was a key example of this against Ipswich with the winger failing to return from 0.98 xG, while Ouattara was also goalless against Tottenham with 0.78 xG.
On several occasions this season, Bournemouth have lacked a clinical edge up front and suffered due to not taking their chances.
Justin Kluivert leads the Cherries’ scoring charts with five, but Antoine Semenyo and Evanilson closely follow behind with four each.
The departure of former talisman Dominic Solanke may be to blame for the lack of expected goals, but if Iraola can patch up this issue, it may propel Bournemouth into European dreamland.
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Zabarnyi a diamond at the back
A huge positive from Bournemouth's tough and battling away team performance was the dependable Illia Zabarnyi.
The Ukranian has been a stalwart at the back this season, playing every minute for the Cherries and Sunday was no different.
Zabarnyi was tasked with the challenge of restricting Ipswich's danger man in Liam Delap.
Delap, who has six goals in the Premier League so far this season, struggled. He registered no shots on target and just five touches in the opposition box, while also being dispossessed on five occasions.
While also marshaling Delap, Bournemouth's 22-year-old was phenomenal individually. Zabarnyi led the game for duels won (14), recoveries (10), and tackles (nine). The Ukranian was also not dribbled past in a rock-solid performance.

