Bournemouth welcome already-relegated Leicester City to the Vitality Stadium for their final Premier League fixture of the 2024-25 campaign on Sunday afternoon.
The Cherries are seeking revenge against the Foxes as they suffered a 1-0 defeat in the reverse fixture at the King Power Stadium in October last year.
Match preview
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Bournemouth were dreaming of European qualification for the first time in their history when they were sitting as high as fifth in the Premier League table at the end of February, but their form has since taken a nosedive, with just two wins posted across their last 12 matches (D4 L6).
After beating Arsenal 2-1 at the Emirates Stadium, the Cherries have since suffered back-to-back defeats to Aston Villa (1-0) and Manchester City (3-1), with defeat to the latter on Tuesday night ending their hopes of securing a top-eight finish and qualifying for the Conference League.
Andoni Iraola's side have already accumulated a club-record points total of 53 in the Premier League this season, but they are now seeking to avoid finishing outside the top half as they currently sit 11th in the table and one point behind 10th-placed Fulham, who play host to Champions League-chasing Man City in their final-day fixture.
Bournemouth have had little to cheer about at the Vitality Stadium in recent months, as they have lost five of their last seven home league fixtures, scoring just four goals in the process; only relegated Ipswich Town (six) have lost more home games since the start of February.
The Cherries also head into Sunday's contest having lost their final fixture in four of their seven Premier League campaigns (W2 D1). However, Iraola's men will welcome a home clash against Leicester, as they are unbeaten in all six of their PL home meetings with the Foxes (W4 D2), winning the last three by an aggregate score of 10-4.
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Leicester's inevitable relegation was sealed at the hands of Premier League champions Liverpool at the end of April before suffering their 24th defeat of the season in their next match against Wolverhampton Wanderers. However, they have since put together a three-game unbeaten run - their best run of the entire season.
Either side of a 2-2 draw with Nottingham Forest, the Foxes have beaten fellow relegated sides Southampton and Ipswich by a 2-0 scoreline, with soon-to-be-departing legend Jamie Vardy scoring his 200th goal on his 500th appearance for the club against the latter last weekend.
Leicester are guaranteed to finish 18th in the table if they avoid defeat against Bournemouth this weekend, but what is not so certain is the future of head coach Ruud van Nistelrooy, with multiple reports suggesting that the Dutchman will leave his post at the end of the season.
The first of Leicester's six Premier League wins this season came in the aforementioned reverse fixture against Bournemouth, and they are now bidding to complete their first league double over the Cherries since the 2013-14 Championship campaign.
Leicester have lost their final league fixture in four of the last seven seasons (W2 D1), although the Foxes have won their last two as a Premier League club, beating Southampton in 2021-22 and West Ham United in 2022-23.
Team News
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Bournemouth will be without Enes Unal (knee), Ryan Christie (groin), Dango Ouattara (adductor) and Luis Sinisterra (thigh) due to injury, while Lewis Cook is suspended after being sent off in the midweek loss to Man City.
Iraola has revealed that Alex Scott and James Hill could be available to face the Foxes; Scott has returned to training wearing a face mask after missing the defeat to Man City with a fractured jaw sustained in the previous match with Aston Villa, while Hill has missed the last six games with a knock.
Dean Huijsen will make his final appearance for Bournemouth before joining Real Madrid, while Milos Kerkez and Antoine Semenyo, two other Cherries stars who have been linked with an exit, are expected to feature in some capacity.
As for Leicester, Abdul Fatawu (knee), Mads Hermansen (hernia), Bobby De Cordova-Reid and Stephy Mavididi (both muscle) all remain sidelined with injuries, while Vardy has chosen not to participate after making his 500th and final appearance against Ipswich last weekend.
In the absence of Vardy, either Patson Daka or Jordan Ayew could start as the central striker. The latter started in the number 10 role last time out, but if he is chosen to lead the line on Sunday, Facundo Buonanotte could be recalled to start in the advanced midfield role.
Fifteen-year-old Jeremy Monga will be hoping to force his way back into the starting lineup and is set to battle with Kasey McAteer for a place on the right flank, while Bilal El Khannouss is the most likely candidate to operate on the left.
Bournemouth possible starting lineup:
Kepa; Smith, Huijsen, Zabarnyi, Kerkez; Scott, Adams; Tavernier, Kluivert, Semenyo; Evanilson
Leicester City possible starting lineup:
Stolarczyk; Pereira, Coady, Faes, Thomas; Ndidi, Skipp; McAteer, Buonanotte, El Khannouss; Ayew
We say: Bournemouth 2-1 Leicester City
With nothing particularly meaningful at stake in this fixture, the fans of both Bournemouth and Leicester will hope to watch an open, entertaining contest between two sides hoping to end their respective seasons on a high.
If Bournemouth name a relatively strong lineup and take advantage of Leicester's porous backline that has failed to keep a single clean sheet in the Premier League this term, then the Cherries should have enough quality in the final third to outscore their opponents and pick up maximum points to potentially climb into the top half of the table.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Oliver Thomas
