High-flying Bournemouth have Liverpool in their sights

LONDON : An away clash at Bournemouth might not have been underlined as a major obstacle in Liverpool's pursuit of the Premier League title but Saturday's clash on the south coast suddenly looks anything but a relaxed trip to the seaside.

Liverpool have won 10 of their last 11 Premier League clashes against Bournemouth but will face a team whose astonishing run of form has catapulted them into the mix for Champions League qualification.

Andoni Iraola's side have beaten three of the current top four at their 11,000-seat Vitality Stadium this season - Manchester City, Arsenal and Nottingham Forest.

Last week's 5-0 hammering of Forest, a week after they went to Newcastle United and destroyed them 4-1, removed any lingering doubts as to the validity of Bournemouth's attempt to compete for a European spot.

They sit in seventh place, one point behind fourth-placed City, and will be relishing the chance to have a swing at Arne Slot's Liverpool on Saturday.

Liverpool did win the reverse fixture 3-0 but the score disguised the problems Bournemouth caused them. Iraola's high-pressing side had 19 shots that day - more than any team has managed against Liverpool this season, home or away.

Incredibly, the 42-year-old Iraola has had to juggle the sort of injury crisis that has knocked bigger clubs off the rails this season and several first-team players will be missing as they take on Liverpool at the weekend.

But thanks to the tireless work ethic he has drilled into every one of his squad and his astute transitional game-plan, Bournemouth continue to punch well above their weight.

"Every week presents a new game to relish, and I believe this is the mindset we should adopt," Iraola said after last week's trouncing of Forest.

Arsenal manager