Often described as the ‘engine room’ of AFC Bournemouth's midfield, Ryan Christie has been a revelation under Andoni Iraola.
Signed by Scott Parker in the 2021-22 Championship season, Christie played out on the right wing and would continue to play there in the following season in the Premier League.
Many fans realised that this was not his best position, as the Scot only managed four goals across the two seasons.
Iraola became Bournemouth manager soon after and realised that Christie would be a perfect fit for his midfield role.
In a footballing system that needs all-out energy in every position, Christie has proved to be a vital player for the Cherries in midfield.
This season, Christie has made impressive numbers. These include 182 recoveries of the ball, the 17 times he has won possession in the final third and 41 chances he has created.
In Iraola’s system, which has been described as ‘organised chaos’, these numbers are seriously impressive.
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Hard work takes its toll
It was revealed last month that Christie had been nursing a groin issue for a majority of the season.
The midfielder would often have injections to ease the issue before games and took it as game-by-game management.
Christie missed the Cherries’ trip to East London on Saturday to face West Ham and it has been revealed this week that the club have decided to go down the surgery route.
Having surgery now takes away the risk of the issue becoming worse if Christie was to play further games.
The 30-year-old took to Instagram to post about the announcement, captioning a photo, "Time to Heal."
With many Bournemouth fans left saddened by the news, it leads to the question of how Iraola’s system will work without the Scot.
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Adams’ Resurgence
When Tyler Adams joined the Cherries in the summer of 2023, he arrived with an ongoing injury issue.
The hamstring issue had denied him a move to Chelsea and kept him out for the Cherries until late September.
The American made a Carabao Cup appearance for Bournemouth at home to Stoke City, however after the game it was revealed he had struggled with the same hamstring.
It was revealed that the treatment Adams had received for the issue did not suffice and they opted for surgery on the hamstring.
This kept Adams out until April 2024 and many Cherries fans questioned the signing as to whether it was worth the money for all the injury issues.
After further issues including a back complaint, the American would finally come into the set-up in October 2024.
In total, Adams missed 45 games for the Cherries across two seasons.
Since returning, Adams has played 21 league games and started 14 of them. In those games, he has put up some impressive numbers and performances.
Adams has won 113 duels, which is 54% of all duels he has contested. He has won 62% of his aerial duels and has a successful tackle rate of 2.8 per 90.
Adams has now become a fan favourite amongst the Cherries faithful and there is no doubt he will continue this fine form to help cover for the absent Christie.
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Lewis Cook - ‘Mr Reliable’
If you were to tell Bournemouth fans that for the majority of the season, Lewis Cook would play at right-back for Iraola's side, they would not have believed you.
However, this has been the case due to injury issues in that position, with club captain Adam Smith and summer signing Julián Araujo being out with injury, and Cook has been very impressive filling in at right-back.
The natural midfielder has made 170 recoveries, won 126 of his duels and won possession in the final third ten times.
This is across 2,572 minutes in the season. Cherries fans are keen to keep Cook injury-free after the Englishman previously suffered two ACL injuries within three seasons.
Smith has now returned from injury and summer signing Araujo is also back involved with the first-team squad, meaning Cook has returned to his natural position.
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Cook and Adams partnership
With Cook and Adams now set to be the Cherries' midfield two, the pair can offer many problems to opposing teams.
Essentially, the attacking threat and vision of Cook with his passing and the defensive awareness and sheer energy of Adams combines to fill the absence of Christie.
The first game of their renewed partnership was at West Ham on Saturday, and they proved to be difficult for West Ham to deal with.
The Irons managed to score twice, however, they did this by bypassing the midfield duo and putting crosses into the box which Iraola’s side could not deal with.
Bournemouth will miss Christie in the energy department, and it is a disappointment that the Scot has had his season ended so soon.
However, it is a safe preventative measure to ensure Christie is fully fit for next season.
Adams and Cook are very much capable to fill the void, especially backed up by Alex Scott, who can bring an entirely new dimension to the Cherries' midfield.
To have found out that Christie had been nursing the groin issue all season, and had still been performing at the highest quality, suggests how much more is there to see from an injury-free Christie next season.
