Eddie Howe hits back at Lewis Miley nonsense.
We didn’t have a shot in the second half and never really got going despite defending well, but some of the post-match reactions and criticism of Lewis Miley was a step too far.
The 19-year-old made his 50th appearance for the club over the weekend, which is some feat for his age, yet he turned off his comments on X after the game, presumably due to some of the criticism he was receiving from the vocal minority of mindless fans.
Eddie Howe was asked about his midfield options in this morning’s press conference and was quick to praise Miley, praising a mature display against a tough Bournemouth side and his ability to get through 90 minutes without fading:
“We need that strength in midfield. You know, those opportunities aren’t going to be there, maybe as regularly as any player like so when you do get the opportunity, you got to try and grab it.
“I thought, I thought Lewi (Miley) played really well. I think he gave a mature performance. As I said earlier, it’s a tougher away ground – they play with a lot of high pressure.
“Ever time Louis was receiving the ball, he had pressure from behind. He had to make quick and good decisions, and invariably he does with the ball.
“He’s a really good distributor, but otherwise a mature performance. Physically. I thought he looked really good. No fatigue in his game. He played 90 minutes. Thought he looked strong.”
Does this mean Miley was outstanding on Sunday? No. It also doesn’t mean that he’s not got clear areas of his game to work on. But he’s a teenager that is still developing, meaning he needs support and time, not ‘fans’ commenting on his posts with unhelpful criticism.
Howe also touched on Joe Willock’s display, admitting he was a “little bit disappointed” he couldn’t influence the game more in a slightly more attacking role down our left:
“But again, the team didn’t really do that well enough in keeping sustained pressure around their box. So somethina for the team to reflect on, actually.”
“Joe playing slightly higher up, probably a little bit disappointed he couldn’t influence it more for us in the attacking half.