Andoni Iraola felt victory came at the “perfect moment” for Bournemouth, as they boosted their European hopes with a 1-0 win over Fulham.
The Cherries ended a run of six successive Premier League games without a win, as Antoine Semenyo’s early strike secured all three points at the Vitality Stadium.
Bournemouth subsequently replaced Fulham in eighth place via a superior goal difference, and moved within six points of Aston Villa in seventh with six games remaining.
Iraola’s side had been in contention for the Champions League places until their slump in form, but the head coach was thrilled by his players’ response.
“Very, very pleased with the performance,” he told Sky Sports. “I think we needed this performance, defending our own box well, the clearances, the blocks, the basics, the set-plays.
“To finish with a clean sheet is so valuable because, normally, when we create chances, we score goals. Defensively is where we have lacked something in recent games, and today we were very good.
“This win comes at the perfect moment for us. Next week, we have another of these games against Crystal Palace [on Saturday]. Like Fulham, they are playing very well, so let’s recover well and arrive in a good spot.
“The standings have been really close in the last few months, so every result is going to be key.”
Semenyo, who scored his eighth Premier League goal of the season, believes Bournemouth are deserving of a place in Europe next season, and highlighted the importance of the victory.
“The win was definitely vital for us,” he said. “The manager has been saying all week that it is a make-or-break game for us.
“We came into the game wanting to give our all, and you could see at the end – in the celebrations – that it meant a lot. Glad to get the three points. It has been a tough couple of weeks, but it is good to be back on the board.
“All season long, we have been grinding and beating the top six teams. This little phase we are going through, losing and drawing, every team goes through that, but that is why this win is so important.
“I feel like what we have done this year, we do definitely deserve [to be in] the European places.”
We have now equalled our all-time @premierleague points record
We keep movingpic.twitter.com/F5mN9ZG7VA
— AFC Bournemouth(@afcbournemouth) April 14, 2025
Meanwhile, Fulham suffered their third successive away defeat, while failing to score on the road for only the second time this season.
Head coach Marco Silva felt his side “threw everything away” following their lacklustre start to the contest, which saw them fall behind after just 53 seconds.
“In the first minute, we conceded a really sloppy goal, but we had 94 minutes more to play and change it,” he told Sky Sports.
“We knew in the first minutes, it was important to take the right decisions, simple decisions. We threw everything away with our first 25 minutes.
“The reaction after that was good, and we had chances to equalise. The second half, we controlled the game and pushed them back.
“You have to have the quality and, sometimes, the patience to break them down and manage moments and one-on-one situations. Sometimes, you need inspiration to break down these types of teams.
The Cottagers have now alternated between victory and defeat in their last eight Premier League games, and Bernd Leno knows they must find consistency to stand any chance to ensuring a return to continental football next term.
“It’s our fault we lost today,” he said. “The first 20 minutes, we were not on point or at our level. We were lucky it was just 1-0. In the second half, we tried everything and were much better, but Bournemouth defended well.
“We had a lot of chances, a couple of headers, dangerous crosses, but in the end, the last percentage was missing.
“It’s been a wonderful season, we are still in a good position and in good moment, even with defeat today. We are still in touch to go to Europe. That says everything. All our games are very tight.
“If we can get more consistency and get a winning streak then we, for sure, go to Europe. But that’s the Premier League, it’s all about detail and margins.”
