Bournemouth star Antoine Semenyo says he is grateful to be playing in the best league in the world after scoring in the 3-1 win against Southampton.
The Cherries, who had struggled to convert good performances into points earlier in the season, finally saw their efforts pay off at home with Semenyo and new signing Evanilson both getting on the scoresheet.
Speaking to Sky Sports after the match, the 24-year-old reflected on the team’s good start to the 2024-25 campaign and his own journey to the Premier League.
He said: “We have had two previous games here and we felt like we played well, but we didn’t get the three points.
“We watched a couple of videos in the meetings in the week and we knew we could catch them out with quick free-kicks.
“It felt wonderful. I wanted to create space and get a shot away. It rifled in the bottom corner, a great finish.
“I’m buzzing with it.” ⚡
Antoine Semenyo reflects on Bournemouth’s 3-1 win over Southampton at the Vitality Stadium 🔴 pic.twitter.com/CGG3MmTCJN
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) September 30, 2024
“All those loans and tough moments – it has been part of my journey.
“Here I am loving the game and playing in the best league in the world. I’m grateful.
“The sky is the limit. We have such a good team and everyone is great.
“We just want to work hard and win games. We are going to cause a few problems this year.”
Elphick delighted with Cherries
Bournemouth coach Tommy Elphick also spoke to Premier League Productions with head coach Andoni Iraola serving a touchline ban.
He added: “It was a game we built up to be quite big beforehand.
Evanilson ⚡🍒 pic.twitter.com/uTsUhBnxVf
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) September 30, 2024
“We’ve put in quite a few performances this season and not got the points we’ve deserved so far, so I think the first half was definitely a representation of what we’ve been doing in spells.
“The tide turned a little bit in the second half, but Southampton are a good team and a tricky team.”
Elphick was particularly pleased with Evanilson’s contribution to the team.
The former Porto man netted his first goal of the season and it was certainly the Cherry on top for the stand in head coach.
He said: “He’s a very different number nine to what we had last season.
“He plays in between centre-backs, he’s very cute with his timing of runs, and I’m really pleased for him. He’s been working really hard.”
