Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola singles out Nottingham Forest's 'elite' quality
Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola has labelled Nottingham Forest’s away form as “ridiculous” ahead of Saturday’s clash between this season’s surprise packages.
Forest have won seven of their last eight Premier League games and drew the other against leaders Liverpool, a run of form which has taken them to third in the table, behind second-placed Arsenal only on goal difference.
And Nuno Espirito Santo’s side will bid to win a fifth consecutive away league match for the first time in 31 years at the Vitality Stadium, a feat they last achieved in the top flight in March 1989.
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Bournemouth’s club-record run of 10 games without defeat in the league has lifted them to seventh in the table, but Iraola said: “It’s going to be a very difficult match for us. Very difficult. For me they are coming from seven wins and one tie against Liverpool. Basically they are the most in-form team of the league for me.
“Away from home, their numbers are for me ridiculous. They’ve won I think seven games. They only lost two, City and Arsenal away. So we will have to be very, very, very good if we want to beat them. It’s the truth. And we cannot fool ourselves.
“It’s not going to be easier than Chelsea away or Newcastle away. Because they [Forest] are even being better away.
“Defensively they are elite. Absolutely elite. You see the goals they concede. Even when they are playing a little bit lower, they don’t suffer. The truth is they are having amazing numbers. Every stat you check defensively they are very good.
“They have the spirit also I suppose when you are in this kind of run, full of confidence. So we will have to be very good, especially offensively.
“We’ll have to be clinical because the way they’ve played all the season we will not have the number of shots and chances we’ve had other games. So we will have to be very good in front of the goal because they don’t give you a lot.”
Bournemouth’s superb form, including a 4-1 win at Newcastle last weekend, has seen Iraola linked with a move to a so-called bigger club but the 42-year-old Spaniard is determined to keep his feet firmly on the ground.
“I think you are not as good as [people say] when you win and you are not as bad as when you lose,” he added.
“When you lose, everything is a disaster. When you win everything is perfect and all the decisions are good decisions.
“I think we have to keep performing like we are doing. Still early in the season, still a lot of games to play. We are in a nice position now in the standings.
“But to keep your position once you are in the top half, let’s say is difficult because the teams around you, they normally win. So you have to keep performing in that level and we’ll see if we have the level to be in that conversation.”
