Iraola believes end result was 'harsh' as Cherries smashed for six at City

AFC Bournemouth were powerless to prevent Manchester City cruising to victory at Etihad Stadium.

AFC Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola described as “really harsh” the extremity of the scoreline after his team’s 6-1 defeat at Manchester City.

The Dorset club held out for half an hour against Pep Guardiola’s side at Etihad Stadium, before Jeremy Doku’s 30^th-minute opener.

Bernardo Silva then struck twice, while Phil Foden, Manuel Akanji and former Cherries defender Nathan Ake were also on target for the reigning Premier League Champions.

Luis Sinisterra netted on 74 minutes for the visitors after firing home a low cross from Max Aarons, his first goal since agreeing a season-long loan deal from Leeds United.

A tough day but good to see Luis Sinisterra off the mark for the Cherries ?? pic.twitter.com/TRqBC8vmDi

— AFC Bournemouth ?? (@afcbournemouth) November 5, 2023

Reflecting after the contest with afcbTV, Spanish boss Iraola said: “I think it was really harsh, especially for the players. I don’t think they deserved this result.

“It is always difficult when you play here against City but they punished every time they were with chances.

“We tried. We had a disallowed goal, the crossbar, then we scored, but when we thought we could have a small chance they punished us again as soon as we made the first mistake.”

Defeat left Cherries 17^th in the league table, with six points from their opening 11 contests.

Another negative for Cherries came just before the interval in Manchester, with midfielder Alex Scott limping off after a challenge with Rodri.

Giving an update on the 20-year-old, who missed the start of the campaign due to a knee problem, Iraola said: “We don’t know until we make the check-ins and the doctors see his knee.

“It’s the other knee, it’s not the (previously) injured knee. It’s a different part, it’s the inside.

“I’ve seen him after the game a little bit more optimistic. We hope it’s something minor but until we don’t make every check-in, we cannot tell.”

Bournemouth host Eddie Howe’s Newcastle United next up in the Premier League on Saturday (5.30pm).