Bournemouth's defender Marcos Senesi expressed his satisfaction with how the new defensive recruits have blended into the team following a busy transfer window. Bournemouth, currently sixth in the Premier League with 11 points from six matches, will face Fulham on Friday. The Cherries' defence saw significant changes, with Dean Huijsen, Ilya Zabarnyi, and Milos Kerkez joining Champions League teams for the 2025-26 season.
To strengthen their backline, Bournemouth added Bafode Diakite, Adrien Truffert, Alex Jimenez, and Veljko Milosavljevic. Senesi is optimistic about these new players' potential and insists there are no communication issues due to language differences. "I think they have come into the squad and done well," Senesi shared on the club
website. "They have settled well, and that's the main thing and the most important. "
Fulham might visit the Vitality Stadium without a recognised striker after Raul Jimenez was injured during their loss to Aston Villa. Rodrigo Muniz also missed that match due to a muscle issue. Marco Silva had to use Adama Traore in a central role but doesn't see this as a permanent solution. "Losing Raul had a massive impact on ourselves; without Rodrigo Muniz," Silva explained.
For Bournemouth, Antoine Semenyo is crucial as he has scored eight of their last 15 Premier League goals. He recently netted a free-kick against Leeds United. Since April, only Erling Haaland and Jarrod Bowen have scored more than Semenyo's eight goals. For Fulham, Alex Iwobi's creativity could be vital with Jimenez and Muniz potentially absent. Iwobi has contributed two assists and one goal this season.
Bournemouth has lost just two of their last 16 league encounters with Fulham (W8 D6). They have been strong at home recently, earning 14 points in their last seven matches at the Vitality Stadium (W4 D2 L1), including four clean sheets. Their recent goals have come from set pieces: penalties and free-kicks.
Fulham's Challenges
Fulham has struggled at Bournemouth recently, losing each of their last three Premier League visits there. They could face four consecutive away defeats against Bournemouth for the first time. Despite scoring first against Aston Villa in their last match, Fulham lost 3-1 and have now lost four of their last seven league games when scoring first.
The OPTA win probability suggests Bournemouth has a 50.6% chance of winning against Fulham's 24.4%, with a draw at 25%. This reflects Bournemouth's recent form and home advantage as they prepare for Friday's match against Fulham at the Vitality Stadium.
Senesi highlighted that all new players speak English except Alex Jimenez, but communication remains smooth as both he and Julio Soler can converse with him in Spanish. "You can see the aim of learning," Senesi noted about his teammates' eagerness to improve.
Silva acknowledged Adama Traore's efforts but admitted it's challenging without their usual strikers: "Adama tried; it's true he is a different style. " He emphasised finding alternative solutions for their attacking strategy given Traore's different playing profile compared to typical strikers.
The Cherries' recent success at home contrasts with Fulham's struggles on the road against them. Silva won his first away Premier League game at Bournemouth as Everton manager in August 2017 but hasn't had much success since then at this venue.
Bournemouth aims to continue their strong form while Fulham seeks solutions amid injuries to key forwards ahead of their clash on Friday night football.
Friday night football pic.twitter.com/BgtCTRsdLl AFC Bournemouth (@afcbournemouth) September 30, 2025
