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AFC Bournemouth

AFC Bournemouth – Price of Promotion

After AFC Bournemouth’s promotion to the Championship, the club’s figures for the 2011/2012 season were published indicating a £3.4 million loss. After Maxim Demin joined forces with chairman Eddie Mitchell to take joint control of the south coast club, large expenditure was the real force behind the push for promotion.

The club has invested heavily both on and off the pitch in the past 18 months summed up by the club record transfer of former prolific Crawley striker Matt Tub

The owners have also invested in a new training set up adjacent to the Goldsands Stadium whilst improving facilities and investing further into the playing squad. This expenditure was also further enhanced through the high compensation fee thought to be around £1.4 million on securing the services of the highly sought duo of the returning Eddie Howe and Jason Tindall as they looked to swap relegation for promotion.

Many fans have enjoyed the club having money to spend after previous financial troubles and administration however the core supporters know not to expect to much after the previous experiences the club has faced in the last decade. The latest figures are likely to be further in the red as Demin loaned the club £6 million through his other companies however it is not entirely secure and if he were to pull the plug it would leave the Cherries in financial meltdown.

Despite many fans expecting an influx of signings this summer, the financial fair play regulations mean it is not going to be that way. Howe has told the local echo that he will only be able to bring in faces to the club should he be able to send others through the exit door. Names labelled around the club such as Charlie Austin and Peter Crouch are very unlikely however one striker who is a possibility is Clayton Donaldson who is in the last year of his contract at Brentford and therefore would command a much lower fee.

Howe has said many times he wants to trim his squad and after the departures of Charlie Sheringham, Jon Meades and the retiring Steve Fletcher, others including Stephane Zubar, Steven Purches, Donal McDermott, Wes Fogden, Matt Tubbs and Wes Thomas could also be leaving the club.

Many Cherries fans are enjoying the ride into the second tier however many know that due to large expenditure and relatively low attendances, it could come crashing down at any point however the income from the Championship will only aid the price of promotion.

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