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Bournemouth signing this 26-year-old Italian would reinforce a key position – Agreed?

Why Vincenzo Grifo could be a smart signing for Bournemouth

Back in April 2019, TEAMtalk (h/t the Liverpool Echo) had claimed that Bournemouth were one of the Premier League clubs interested in signing Vincenzo Grifo, who was then on loan at Freiburg from Hoffenheim. However, no deal materialized last summer.

After a decent loan spell with Freiburg where he scored six goals in 16 Bundesliga games, Vincenzo Grifo, 26, was signed permanently from Hoffenheim in September 2019. The Italian has bagged two goals and three assists in 13 appearances across all competitions so far.

With the 26-year-old wide man performing well since joining Freiburg permanently, should Bournemouth reignite their interest in the player?

Freiburg winger Vincenzo Grifo celebrates after scoring. (Getty Images)
Freiburg winger Vincenzo Grifo celebrates after scoring. (Getty Images)

Without any second thoughts, yes! The Cherries have slipped into the relegation zone with defeat on New Year’s Day. The 4-0 loss to West Ham leaves them with just one win from last 10 matches.

Thus, the January transfer window is very crucial for Bournemouth and Eddie Howe needs to strengthen his squad to avoid the ongoing slide.

The sea coast club are an exciting side known for playing crisp, attacking football under Eddie Howe. However, they haven’t been at their best this season, with the likes of Callum Wilson, Josh King and Ryan Fraser showing alarming inconsistency, while summer signing Arnaut Danjuma is yet to prove himself in England.

Harry Wilson, on loan from Liverpool, has caught the eye with his goalscoring for the Cherries but Howe needs more ammunition in his attack to score goals consistently.

Having said that, Bournemouth must go all out for Vincenzo Grifo to bolster their attack. Grifo is a left-winger by trade but he can play in various positions across the midfield and the attack.

That said, many of his goals have seen him drift in from the left and appear in good positions. He has averaged 2.2 shots, 1.2 key passes and 0.9 dribbles per game in the Bundesliga this season. [Courtesy: WhoScored]

Eddie Howe applauds the fans after the game. (Getty Images)
Eddie Howe applauds the fans after the game. (Getty Images)

The Italian can make some well-timed runs to beat the offside trap when his teammates are launching a counter-attack.

He is gradually adding more goals and assists to his game and also has enough strength to hold the ball up as well as can use his powerful frame to win some of the 50-50 aerial duels with the opposition defenders.

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In the video below, one can get a glimpse of Grifo’s qualities and what he would add to this Bournemouth side.

Verdict

Howe needs more firepower up top as the Cherries have been overly reliant on the attacking contributions of Wilson and King this season. Grifo might take some time to adapt to English football but he’s worth taking a gamble for Bournemouth.