West Bromwich Albion v AFC Bournemouth Betting Tips: Experience to see hosts through

West Bromwich Albion manager Tony Pulis welcomes his former team AFC Bournemouth for this Premier League opener. Both of these sides performed quite a way above expectations last season so it will be interesting to see if they can keep them up this time around.

Albion finished 10th last season and never looked to be in any kind of trouble. However, this was arguably a disappointing finished as the Black Country side had been pushing at the European spots for the majority of the season before falling away at the end.

Everybody knows that Pulis prioritises defensive solidity over attacking flair and it is a ploy that has worked for him for years. Despite the fact that West Brom fans are calling for more attractive football, I do not think we can expect a different approach from the Welshman this time around. However, they have lost a key player in Darren Fletcher which could lead to a drop in leadership on the pitch. On the other hand, Jay Rodriguez, who was selected by England a couple of years ago, will be keen to recapture his old form following his move from Southampton.

The Baggies have been particularly strong at home for a while now and last season they went on a run of seven wins in ten matches. I think it is fair to ignore that four-match losing streak at the back-end of the season as the team were clearly on the beach.

Bournemouth snatched 9th from Albion on the final day of the season by bettering the Baggies’ final result. Despite being favourites for relegation when they were promoted a couple of years ago, Bournemouth have established themselves as a Premier League side very quickly. However, they must be wary of complacency and you would imagine that survival is still the first priority for boss Eddie Howe.

Howe is known for his attacking philosophy and it has worked well during his long tenure at the club and, by simply signing Jermain Defoe from Sunderland, he has given his side another huge boost in the final third. Having said that, there have been alarm bells ringing around Bournemouth’s defence since they gained promotion with many predicting it could come back to bite them sooner rather than late. With this in mind, Howe has brought in defender Nathan Ake from Chelsea, who performed so well on loan last season, and experienced goalkeeper Asmir Begovic.

Despite the good mood at Bournemouth recently, away form is a concern and they took maximum points in just one of their final nine matches on the road last season. Furthermore, they have kept just seven away clean sheets in their Premier League history.

In games where it looks like it could be quite close, I always tend to back the more defensive side and so am going with Albion on this occasion. Pulis’ experience should see his side come out on top at home on Saturday. The West Brom win is priced at 6/4.