The initial league meeting between these sides produced five goals as Sunderland came away 3-2 winners over Bournemouth at the Stadium of Light. That game had plenty of goalmouth action with both sides registering an xG in excess of 1.0 (1.28-1.70) and the clash seeing a combined 12 shots on target.

Sunderland have really struggled on the road in the Premier League this term. Their record at the Stadium of Light has masked this record, but they’ve only managed to win two of their 13 games on the road this term, losing seven of these games and conceding 20 goals in the process. Recent games have also unearthed some issues for Sunderland; they’re winless across their last three Premier League matches, most recently losing 3-1 to Fulham.

Bournemouth have seen 2+ goals in four of their last five matches across all competitions, except for a 0-0 draw against West Ham last time out. That goalless draw should have produced at least a few goals with West Ham racking up an xG of 3.27 on their own. Bournemouth have seen 34 goals across their 13 home games in the Premier League this season (2.61 per game). 

Bournemouth committed 13 fouls and received six cards, including a red card, when these sides met earlier in the season. This selection combines quite well with the foul angle we’ve gone with as part of this bet builder, as Bournemouth should see their card count steadily top up alongside what is expected to be a decent foul count.

Bournemouth have picked up 63 yellow cards in the Premier League this season; only Brighton (65) and Tottenham (68) have picked up more cautions than the Cherries this season. The fact that Bournemouth picked up six cards in the initial league meeting between these sides offers real promise for a decent card count from the home side here, as it is clear that Sunderland can get under their skin and look to stifle their approach.

Sunderland ran out 3-2 winners in that game too, so there is likely to be some overhang in this clash, leading to a decent card count for Bournemouth in this encounter. I’d also consider higher lines for Bournemouth cards here; they can get sucked into the emotion of games and take their tactical instructions a bit too directly, which leads to a spiral in cards, as we saw when the sides met earlier in the season. 

Andoni Iraola quickly became one of my favourite managers in the Premier League when he was appointed Bournemouth head coach. It took him a while to settle in and get his ideas across, but Bournemouth now have a clear approach under the Spanish boss.

Bournemouth’s main approach is to press the opposition high and then get shots away as quickly as they can when winning the ball back. Their PPDA has been amongst the most impressive in the Premier League since Iraola took charge, with this approach naturally leading to Bournemouth coming away with high foul counts in their Premier League matches.

Only Wolves (13.4 fouls committed per game) have committed more fouls in the Premier League this season than Bournemouth (12.1 fouls committed per game). Bournemouth topped the foul rankings in the Premier League last season as well, averaging 13.8 fouls committed per game - showing that this is a consistent part of their game, which can come to the fore in this clash.

Junior Kroupi is a superstar in waiting; he’s already scored eight goals across his 12 starts in the Premier League this season, making him the highest scoring teenager in the top flight this term. 31.8% of his shots have been deemed as ‘unsaveable’ by the opposition's goalkeeper, the best mark of any player in Europe to have 20+ shots.

Kroupi has had 26 shots across his 12 starts in the Premier League this season (2.42 per 90). 15 of these attempts have found the target (1.40 per 90), working out at a shot accuracy of 58%, which is very impressive for a player of his age and relative inexperience in the Premier League. He is in the perfect team for his attacking development, too. Bournemouth regularly post high shot counts, and their positive approach sees Kroupi usually get at least two sights of goal per game.

Kroupi has been playing just behind Evanilson in recent weeks as Andoni Iraola attempts to find the best role for him in the side. I think this role just off the striker really suits Kroupi, he hasn’t quite matured physically yet, so being away from the centre backs is ideal - he’s pretty ambitious with his shots as well, with his effort on target from outside of the box against West Ham last time out being a good example of this.

It usually takes foreign players a few weeks, or even months, to adapt to the Premier League, but that hasn’t been the case with Rayan, who has looked brilliant in all three of his starts for Bournemouth in the Premier League so far.

He’s registered three goal contributions across just 288 minutes of action in the Premier League so far, and has also taken nine shots across these games, working out to a promising average of 2.81 shots per 90. He’s always willing to take on his man, and should have added to his goal contribution tally against West Ham last time out - narrowly missing the target after a brilliant run.

It was always going to be difficult for Bournemouth to replace Semenyo, but Rayan hitting the ground running is a massive plus for Andoni Iraola, with the Brazilian already looking very comfortable in his new surroundings, setting him up to continue his strong form with a goal contribution against a Sunderland side who have conceded 20 goals on the road in the Premier League this term. 

Tyler Adams is not the most aggressive player in the Premier League, but he often ends the season with a decent card count due to the role he is asked to fill in this Bournemouth side. 

Bournemouth’s approach when out of possession is amongst the boldest in the Premier League; they commit four or even five players to their press, which leaves Adams a bit vulnerable and results in tactical fouls. 

Adams has committed 24 fouls across his 16 starts in the Premier League this season, working out to an average of 1.70 fouls committed per 90. This foul record has seen him pick up five yellow cards - only Brooks, Senesi, and Jimenez have collected more yellow cards for Bournemouth this season than Adams.

I’ve touched on Bournemouth's aggression when out of possession throughout this piece, and I think it can lead to Sadiki exceeding his usual foul won numbers. Recent games have seen Sadiki drop a bit behind a pairing of Le Fee and Diarra. Xhaka is nearing a return to the starting lineup, but isn’t likely to be fit enough to start here, so this should be the midfield line up we see from Sunderland. 

Sadiki is averaging 1.07 fouls won per 90 in the Premier League this season, but there are plenty of reasons to expect this rate to increase. He’s lining up against the second most combative side in the Premier League, with only Wolves committing more fouls than Bournemouth in the Premier League this season. Bournemouth committed 13 fouls on their trip to the Stadium of Light earlier in the campaign, with Sadiki being fouled once.

He’ll be up against Tyler and Scott, who are committing 2.94 fouls per 90 between them in the Premier League this season - offering the perfect partnership to haul down Sadiki on at least two occasions in this encounter, which should be highly competitive based on the most recent meeting between the sides.