Manchester United will aim to build on the heartening midweek victory over Chelsea when Bournemouth visit Old Trafford on Saturday (15:00 GMT).
Erik ten Hag’s side overcame the Blues 2-1 on Wednesday thanks to a Scott McTominay double, to move within three points of the top four in the Premier League table.
We now face a Cherries side whose recent four-game unbeaten run will give them hope they can win at the Theatre of Dreams for the first time in their history.
To mark the release of our latest digital collectible for the fixture, which you can claim until full-time on Saturday and read more about below, we're recalling our record against Bournemouth and showing the highlights from some classic meetings with them.
Bournemouth reached the Premier League for the first time in 2015/16 and defied the odds to remain in the top flight for five consecutive campaigns, during which the Reds had numerous entertaining encounters with them – including the first game below, when Zlatan Ibrahimovic marked his league debut for United with a goal.
The clubs have met 12 times in the competition, including twice last season when the Cherries returned after two terms back in the Championship and achieved survival following an early-season change of manager from Scott Parker to Gary O'Neil.
O'Neil left in June so we'll face Bournemouth under new management again this weekend, in the shape of Andoni Iraola.
Overall, we've won nine and drawn one of those 12 encounters with the south-coast club. Scroll down to recall some of our best games against them so far.
BOURNEMOUTH 1 UNITED 3 (2016/17)
A sunny start to the season by the seaside was the perfect backdrop to Jose Mourinho's first league game in charge of the Reds. Juan Mata's opening goal, in the 40th minute, owed much to a defensive calamity by the home side, with Simon Francis inadvertently teeing up the Spaniard for the easiest of finishes. Some breathing space was secured on the hour mark when Anthony Martial's shot led to Wayne Rooney heading home to double the advantage. The away fans were craving a strike from Zlatan, though, as the charismatic Swede had already made his mark in pre-season. The veteran striker duly obliged by drilling a 25-yarder past keeper Artur Boruc and, with another new boy in Eric Bailly also impressing, this was a perfect opener. Not even Adam Smith's consolation could take any shine off the day.
Mourinho may have been far from happy with his team's performance but there was the elation of an injury-time winner for those who travelled down south to witness a victory that had not looked like arriving for much of the contest. Callum Wilson poked the home side in front and it was difficult to argue that it was not a deserved lead after the Cherries flew out of the traps. Against the run of play, Martial levelled matters, following good approach play by Ashley Young and Alexis Sanchez, and United improved after the break. Young hit the woodwork via a free-kick, with Bournemouth scrambling the rebound away, as Rashford and Pogba went close to finding the net. Rashford was to come up trumps, however, in the dying seconds. Pogba stood up a cross from the left and the then-21-year-old appeared to take an age before being able to provide a finish that sparked predictably joyous scenes in the away end.
UNITED 4 BOURNEMOUTH 1 (2018/19)
The Reds blitzed Bournemouth with three goals in the first half, before Romelu Lukaku added a fourth, to end 2018 on a real high. The late-December clash was only five minutes old when Paul Pogba benefited from some dazzling footwork by Marcus Rashford. The France international then headed home an Ander Herrera cross as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer made it three league wins out of three as caretaker manager. Rashford continued to shine and got in on the act by beating Asmir Begovic from a Martial centre. Nathan Ake pulled one back soon afterwards, before the half-time whistle, but Lukaku restored the three-goal lead when converting a pass by Pogba. Bailly was sent off for a foul on Ryan Fraser but the points had long been wrapped up.
UNITED 5 BOURNEMOUTH 2 (2019/20)
A game taking place in July and behind closed doors, due to the pandemic, may have lacked any atmosphere but it certainly made up for it in terms of goals and entertainment. Things even got off to a bad start for United when Junior Stanislas handed the relegation-threatened visitors a surprise lead. Mason Greenwood levelled before Rashford punished an Adam Smith handball by firing in from the penalty spot. Martial bagged a real stunner, with a terrific curling drive that dipped just under the bar, but the Cherries responded after the interval. Bailly was adjudged to have handled inches inside the area and ex-Red Joshua King took full advantage from the spot. Any hopes of a comeback were dashed when Greenwood added his second and Bruno Fernandes belted a superb free-kick past Aaron Ramsdale to supply the icing on the cake.
COLLECT UNITED: BOURNEMOUTH
Time is running out to get your free United v Bournemouth collectible, a unique piece of digital artwork featuring Alejandro Garnacho's spectacular overhead kick against Everton.
Growing your collection unlocks benefits, so claim yours now for the chance to win VIP rewards. Just head to collectibles.manutd.com and follow these steps:
1. SIGN IN TO THE COLLECTIBLES WEBSITE
Once you've visited collectibles.manutd.com, click Sign In, Use Social and finally your choice of Google, Facebook or X (formerly Twitter) account.
2. CREATE YOUR FREE DIGITAL WALLET
Signing in with your chosen social account will create an online wallet where you can store all the matchday tokens you claim throughout 2023/24. How many will you have by the end of the season? Why not challenge your friends and see who can build the biggest collection.
3. COLLECT NOW
Click this button on the collectibles.manutd.com homepage to find the latest token, and again on the next page to unlock and add it to your digital wallet. Then you're done!
TERMS & CONDITIONS
Manchester United’s officially licensed Digital Collectibles, powered by Tezos and brought to you by Tezos ecosystem companies, are a form of cryptoasset. Manchester United Digital Collectibles have been issued as a collectible item and not an investment. However, it is important that you keep in mind that:
1. Manchester United Digital Collectibles are not currently regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority in the UK and are not covered by the Financial Ombudsman Service or the Financial Services Compensation Scheme;
2. the value of Manchester United Digital Collectibles is variable and can go down as well as up;
3. tax may be payable on any profits made on the sale of Manchester United Digital Collectibles; and
4. for those Digital Collectibles which require purchase, the decision to purchase Manchester United Digital Collectibles requires careful thought and consideration. You should seek independent financial advice if you are in doubt. You should not purchase any cryptoassets if you do not fully understand the nature of your purchase and the risks involved.