Iraola Dismisses Real Madrid Links: ‘I Don’t Concern Myself with These Matters’.

Andoni Iraola, at 42, is firmly concentrating on guiding Bournemouth’s unexpected quest for a top-four finish in the Premier League, despite swirling speculation linking the Spaniard with a move to European champions Real Madrid.

A victory over Wolves at home on Saturday would see Bournemouth leapfrog Manchester City into fourth spot, further igniting aspirations that the south-coast club could be competing in Europe next season.

Bournemouth, currently sitting in fifth place, has suffered just one defeat in their last 13 league matches, that setback coming against league leaders Liverpool. This impressive form has significantly heightened the profile of Iraola, who previously managed Rayo Vallecano.

After training on Friday, he downplayed notions of being a successor to Carlo Ancelotti at Real Madrid, should the Italian decide to depart at season’s end.

“I don’t give much thought to these matters,” said Iraola. “Having spent many years in this profession both as a player and a coach, I understand how these things operate and what holds weight and what does not.

“For me, nothing changes. The focus this week is the match against Wolves tomorrow. It’s going to be a tough challenge, and it’s an excellent opportunity for us to keep picking up points.”

Iraola took over from Gary O’Neil following the 2022-23 season and, despite a rocky start—going winless in his first nine league matches—Bournemouth finished in 12th place, with their trajectory markedly improving since then.

With 43 points accrued from 25 games, Iraola highlighted that the initial target of ensuring Bournemouth’s safety from relegation has already been met.

When asked how high Bournemouth’s ambitions should now be, Iraola indicated that such discussions should be reserved for when there are only five games left to play.

“We are performing well, that’s true. This season, we’ve been fairly consistent. However, we’ll see where we end up at the conclusion of the season. Nothing is handed out in March; the real assessments come at the end,” he commented.

“Now isn’t the time for me to analyse or evaluate. It’s great to be around the top teams, but we still need to accumulate many more points.”

While Bournemouth will be considered the favourites against 17th-placed Wolves, Iraola noted that the Midlands side’s league position is misleading due to a challenging recent fixture list, which has made them a potentially dangerous opponent.

“I believe it’ll be a tough match,” he remarked. “They are performing well; they’ve faced a very demanding schedule.

“If you look at their last eight games, they’ve essentially played against nearly all the teams at the top of the table, and they’ve remained competitive throughout.”