- Bournemouth have two wins, one draw and two defeats in their last five matches in all competitions
- SK Sturm Graz have three wins, one draw and one defeat in their last five contests
- The Cherries are set to dominate this game with Marco Rose's men set to win at home and see over 2.5 goals scored
Cherries can dominate Styrian visitors
Bournemouth are 10th in the UEFA Europa League 2026-2027 with three points from one match, but it is still a solid start in the league phase for the Cherries.
They have one win, one draw and one loss from their last three games at home and are not untouchable at Vitality Stadium, but they should be able to assert their authority in this game.
SK Sturm Graz are 17th with one point from one game in the competition and will be desperate to avoid an early exit, but we're backing the Premier League side to get the win on Thursday.
Rose is getting his Bournemouth boys to press properly
Rose has set his team up to press as a unit when they don't have possession in a narrow 4-2-2-2 system and they can hurt teams with pace when they win the ball back and attack vertically.
It's a structure that can dominate games at their own ground and Rose's team have enough punch to see this through at Vitality even if their Austrian opponents come to play.
Sturm have three wins in their last five and are on a two-game winning streak, beating Floridsdorfer AC 3-1 at home and FK Austria Wien 2-0 away, so they will arrive with confidence.
Ingolitsch’s men are on a roll
Fabio Ingolitsch has his team pressing hard and going vertical from a flexible 4-3-1-2 system, but it can leave them open if they get it wrong and Bournemouth can punish them for that.
Bournemouth have lost their last two, going down 0-1 at home to Liverpool and then 5-1 away to Chelsea, so Rose is under some pressure to get back on track.
The Cherries sharp man in the Europa League so far is Justin Kluivert, who has one goal in one appearance. The ex-roma and Newcastle winger can be a threat from the start between the lines and will be worth backing to score on Thursday.
Ryan Christie has chipped in with three of Bournemouth's nine goals in their last five games and the late arrival can be a good value anytime goalscorer on the south coast.
Oumar Diakite has scored three of SK Sturm Graz's four goals in their last five, so he is also carrying a lot of the goal load for his side.
Our selection is a Bournemouth home win with over 2.5 goals to be scored and both teams to score no, as the Premier League outfit should be too slick for the Austrian Bundesliga club to match.
