3 AFC Bournemouth Players That Deserve More Game Time

Following the first 4 Premier League games of the 2026/27 season, there have been enough games in the league and also in the early stages of the EFL Cup to gauge which players will be getting the most game time over the course of the season.

The first player that needs to be mentioned is Ryan Christie. The 31 year old has only played 28 minutes in the 3 Premier League games he has been in the squad for following his suspension for the away trip to Manchester City.

His hattrick against Lincoln in the EFL Cup 3rd round shows that he is a player full on confidence despite not playing much first team football in the last 5 months. Christie also showed some glimpses of class on and off the ball in his 25 minute cameo in today's 2-2 draw against Brentford, adding dynamism and energy into the middle of the park throughout the second half.

Tyler Adams' minutes will need to be managed due to his poor injury record, and with Justin Kluivert being known for not being able to start multiple games in succession in congested periods of the season, there could be space for Christie in the defensive and offensive area of the midfield either side of the upcoming international break.

The next player that deserves game time, but for a different reason, is Daniel Jebbison. The 23 year old has only played 16 minutes in AFCB's first 4 league games of the season, and was left out of Marco Rose's matchday squad vs Brentford. 

It was widely reported that there were a plethora of EFL clubs that were interested in signing the Canadian International in the summer transfer window, but Jebbison rejected these offers and said when speaking to BBC Solent that he was willing to fight for his spot at Bournemouth this season.

With Evanilson notching 3 assists in 4 games, and Junior Kroupi expected to return from his foot injury in less than 2 months time, minutes do not look like they will be easy to come by for Jebbison. On top of that, Marco Rose left Jebbison out of AFCB's Europa League squad, and it looks like he would have been better off joining an EFL Championship club, permanently or on loan, to get regular playing time in a crucial stage of his career development

For similar reasons of Ryan Christie, Alex Toth has showed signs of real promise and charatcer whenever he has been given a chance to play for AFCB.

However, similar to Daniel Jebbison, Toth has been left out of multiple matchday squads so far in the 2026/27 season, and didn't even start against Lincoln City in the EFL Cup.

Alex Scott, Tyler Adams, Lewis Cook and Ryan Christie are all evidently ahead of Toth in the pecking order, and as it stands, there doesn't seem to be a regular place in the squad for the Hungarian International.

If this current theme continues until January, a loan for the remainder of the season will be much needed to continue the development of the 20 year old until he has a chance to prove himself consistently in the Premier League.