FEWEST DEFEATS, HOW PARKER BUILT A MEAN MACHINE

BOURNEMOUTH. - As Mark Travers did his best to live up to his inherited nickname ‘El Pulpo’ by clutching all four of his end of season awards, Scott Parker’s methods were, in a sense, finally vindicated.

Since his arrival, Parker has continued to implement a patient style of play at Bournemouth, in search of control rather than chaos.

His core values centred on building a defined framework, where every player understood their role.

During this off-season, he will have to deal with Jefferson Lerma, another key cog in Parker’s desire for ball dominance and concerted and sustained pressing systems.

The Colombian’s contract runs until 2023, with discussions over an extension thought to be one of the main tasks on the hierarchy’s list.

The same applies to the academy trio of Jordan Zemura, Jaidon Anthony and Mark Travers.

Earlier this year, the club activated one-year extensions in Zemura and Anthony’s deals, after failing to find a breakthrough with a longer-term agreement, during the season.

The club are expected to revisit negotiations now promotion has been secured.

All three are priority renewals.

They were a huge part of the success story and system where if or when individual performance levels fluctuated, the team’s defined structure would provide a support base.

This was partly down to Parker shaping and sculpting the balance of his side throughout the season, depending on personnel and game states.

Mirroring Pep Guardiola’s interpretation of inverted fullbacks, not only in generating rotational patterns outwide but also being in positions to halt counter-attacks, Bournemouth rarely showed repeated fragility.

In turn, this culminated in Ravers or El Pulpo, winning three Player of the Season awards, as well as the Championship Golden Glove for most clean sheets.

In total, Bournemouth recorded 21 shutouts in 46 games, conceding just 39 goals.

It laid the platform for defensive stability, thereby ensuring if attacking mechanics did malfunction, as they would prove to do so during the winter, they would not implode at the other end.

Bournemouth suffered eight defeats - the fewest of any side in the Championship.

They were also never comprehensively beaten either, having not lost a match by more than two goals. If you compare that with Fulham, who also achieved promotion, cases of implosion were seen from time to time. Their two matches against Coventry, for instance, yielded a 7-2 aggregate defeat.

“We’re going into a division next year that is ruthless and clinical,” Parker told Dorset Live.

“It is another 10 steps up to what the Championship is. The gap between the Championship and the Premier League is vast.

“We’re going to need to build our game on real solidness as a team, not just the keeper and back four. As a unit, we’re going to need to constantly give ourselves a solid foundation. But our defensive record (from the Championship) puts us in good stead.”

Parker’s Bournemouth was predicated on defensive solidity from the outset, with intensive work in pre-season focused on fixing shortcomings, such as defending set-plays and crosses. -