After what feels like a very long international break, AFC Bournemouth are finally back, welcoming Brighton & Hove Albion to Dean Court this Saturday.

Adam Smith is set to miss the next few weeks with a hamstring injury sustained in the win against Spurs, but Lewis Cook could be involved for the first time this season after injuring his MCL in early July. There are some calls to be made around who replaces Smith, and whether virtual ever presents from last season Justin Kluivert and Ryan Christie come into the XI – here is what I think Andoni Iraola will do.

GK – DJORDJE PETROVIC

Petrovic is the undisputed no.1 at the club, and came through unscathed in his two appearances for Serbia in the international break, though he will be looking for a better performance than what he produced in their 5-0 loss to England.

RB – JAMES HILL

Hill came on for Smith early in the first half two weeks ago, and put in a strong display at right back. Since then, he has committed his future to the club, extending his deal until 2029. That shows a lot of faith in Hill, and I would expect him to start over new signing Alex Jimenez, who has only had a couple days training with the club.

CBs – BAOFDE DIAKITE + MARCOS SENESI

Diakite and Senesi didn’t have the best start to their partnership against Liverpool, but bounced back superbly with back-to-back clean sheets against Wolves and Spurs. This is likely to be the CB duo going forward, although new signing Veljko Milosavljević could be in the squad for the first time as he looks to compete for a spot in the team.

LB – ADRIEN TRUFFERT

Truffert has been extremely impressive in his first three outings in the Premier League, and should be raring to go having not gone on international duty. Hopefully the rest won’t have disrupted his form too much, as he has so far defied expectations with his performances.

DM (‘6’) – TYLER ADAMS

It might be somewhat of a risk to pick Tyler Adams from the off, having just played 66 minutes in a friendly against Japan in the early hours of Wednesday morning (BST). Presumably, he would have arrived back in the country late on Wednesday, potentially jet lagged. But knowing Adams’ character, and his importance to the side, I think Andoni Iraola will keep him in the lineup for this one.

CM (‘8’) – ALEX SCOTT

This was a tough decision, as Ryan Christie is my favourite AFCB player. But for me, it would be extremely harsh to drop Scott after his display at Spurs. Scott is fresh having not played in the international break, and doesn’t warrant being dropped – that said, if this is the lineup, expect Christie to replace him after 60 or so minutes. It could also be that, if Adams is not ready to start, that Scott drops into the ‘6’ and Christie makes his return in the ‘8’.

AM (’10) – MARCUS TAVERNIER

Again, it might be seen as controversial to not start Justin Kluivert, who put up such impressive numbers. But Tavernier is fresh, having not played for two weeks, and his performances have certainly not warranted being dropped after an impressive start to the season. He has looked good in the ’10’, so for me, deserves another start there. Kluivert will simply have to bide his time, which will almost certainly come again (maybe sooner rather than later).

RW – DAVID BROOKS

Brooks has created the most big chances in the Premier League this season (four), and has been outstanding overall. Brooks started once and came off the bench once in the international break, but should be raring to go having just signed a new contract extension. I have a feeling he bags his first goal of the season tomorrow.

LW – ANTOINE SEMENYO

Semenyo has made a position on the wing (left or right) his own – there is no dropping this man. He started both games for Ghana in the international break, but I have no doubt he will be good to go again for this one.

ST – EVANILSON

Coming off the back of his first goal of the season against Spurs, Evanilson probably didn’t want the international break to come – but hopefully he carries on where he left off.

SUBS – DENNIS, JIMENEZ, SOLER, *COOK, CHRISTIE, ADLI, GANNON-DOAK, KLUIVERT, KROUPI

*(If Cook is not fit, then Milosavljevic will likely be in the squad)

Andoni Iraola will be looking to get one over Fabian Hurzeler, who got the better of him on both occasions last season. The Seagulls have had a solid start to the season, but will feel it should have been more. They conceded a 96th minute equaliser to draw at home to Fulham on opening day, then somehow conspired to lose at Everton the week after, missing three big chances, including a penalty. They should come into this one in much higher spirits, though, having overcome Manchester City last time out, despite going behind. Hurzeler has almost a fully fit squad to choose from, with long term absentees Solly March and Adam Webster the only players unavailable.

Both sides are full of extremely impressive, young talent, spearheaded by two of the most impressive young managers in the game. Neither side is going to set up to do anything other than win, and the styles of play from both should complement each other for a very exciting, end-to-end game of football.

Can AFCB make it three wins in a row in the league, or will Hurzeler defeat Iraola again? No outcome would surprise me this weekend.

PREDICTION: AFC BOURNEMOUTH 2-1 BRIGHTON & HOVE ALBION