On Saturday 2nd April 2022, the second-placed Bournemouth take on 18th placed Bristol City in the EFL Championship. In the reverse fixture back in October 2021, it was Bournemouth that came out on top with a 2-0 away victory. Jamal Lowe and Jordan Zemura were the goalscorers in that game. Coming into this game, Bournemouth got a big 3-0 away win at Huddersfield Town, and Bristol City drew 2-2 with West Brom.
Bournemouth come into this match having earned a big 3-0 away victory at Huddersfield Town. Jaidon Anthony, Jefferson Lerma, and Dominic Solanke all scored for Bournemouth in the previous game. This win leaves Bournemouth with a record of 20 wins, nine draws, and seven losses. Bournemouth have the best defense in the league this season, conceding just 31 goals. What’s more, they are outperforming their xGA, as it predicted the team to let in 37 times until now.
Bournemouth have generally performed well in attack this season. As the shot map seen above indicates, inside the opponents’ six-yard box, they have scored goals more often than missing them. Still, Bournemouth are relying on Dominic Solanke for the most part to net the goals. No other Bournemouth player has reached double figures this season, but two players, Billing and Anthony, are joint second with eight goals each.
For Bournemouth, the most successful threat creator this season is Jaidon Anthony from open play as well as set-pieces. Most of his threat comes from corners and crosses. Still, no Bournemouth player has reached the score of 10 so far this season. This may imply that Bournemouth are good at finishing chances, but they are not creating them abundantly.
Bristol City come into this game after a 2-2 draw at home against West Brom. Nahki Wells and Andreas Weimann scored for Bristol. This result means Bristol City have now won 12, drawn eight, and lost 19 games this season. Bristol City have scored 49 times this season, but xG predicted them to score 46 times this season. This small overachievement in attack is why Bristol are in the lower mid-table because they have the third-worst defense in the league this season.
As shown in the above chart, Bristol City are either average or close to average in several categories. Some of these categories include goals per 90, xG per 90, assists per 90, key passes per 90, and progressive runs per 90.
On paper, Bournemouth are favorites to win this encounter as they have the best defense and are taking on Bristol City, who have the third-worst defense in the league. But football is not played on paper. So it will be interesting to watch this match.
