Bournemouth will look to make it two wins from two in the league phase of the Europa League on Thursday night as they welcome Sturm Graz to the Vitality.
Bournemouth’s tough start to the season continued at the weekend, as they were thrashed 5-1 at Stamford Bridge by Chelsea – on an afternoon two of my selections landed.
The Cherries are still winless in the Premier League this season (W0-D3-L3), with that result seeing them fall inside the relegation zone – a point adrift of safety.
However, Marco Rose’s hosts have made a winning start to the league phase of the Europa League, claiming an impressive 1-2 win in San Sebastien against Real Sociedad.
Sturm Graz travel to the Vitality off the back of a win in the Austrian capital, as they defeated Austria Vienna 0-2, but are still seven points behind league leaders Rapid Vienna in the Austrian Bundesliga table.
Fabio Ingolitch’s visitors have made a solid start to their league phase campaign, as they held Ligue 1 side Rennes to a goalless draw.
How the bookies view it: Bournemouth clear favourites
Bournemouth are clear favourites to make it two wins from two in the Europa League this season, with bet365 pricing a home success at just 2/11.
The Austrians are 14/1 underdogs to leave the south coast with all three points, whilst the draw is also unfancied at 6/1.
Head to head: First-ever meeting
Unsurprisingly, Thursday’s clash at the Vitality will be the first-ever competitive meeting between these two clubs.
Players to watch: Tavernier to find the target?
Despite Bournemouth’s struggles, Marcus Tavernier has had a decent start to the campaign, as he has already found the target on three occasions.
Therefore, I like the look of the 5/6 on offer at bet365 for the ex-Middlesbrough man to Score or Assist on Thursday.
Backed a player to find the net? Check our Goalscorer Betting guide to see how the markets work and where to find value.
Predicted line-ups:
AFC Bournemouth: Petrovic, Smith, Hill, Silva, Truffert, Adams, Christie, Rayan, Brooks, Tavernier, Evanilson
Sturm Graz: Khudyakov, Vallci, Quarshie, Koller, Balbo, Weinhandl, Stankovic, Matoshi, Hodl, Seidl, Diakite
Anything else catch the eye?
Bournemouth have had a tough start to the Premier League season, but they claimed an impressive win away at Real Sociedad in their league phase opener, and they should prove to be too strong for their Austrian counterparts.
The Cherries are just 2/11 to claim all three points, but backing the hosts to keep a clean sheet boosts the price to 11/10 at bet365.
Marco Rose’s hosts aren’t renowned for keeping clean sheets, but the Austrians have failed to score in each of their previous three European contests.
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