Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola revealed that the quick Marcus Tavernier free kick, which led to Evanilson’s first goal for the Cherries, was the result of meticulous analysis from his backroom staff.
The Brazilian scored the opener in Monday night’s 3-1 victory over Southampton, after Tavernier seemed to take advantage of an opportune moment to clip the ball over the top, with the Saints’ defence slow to react after the award of a free kick.
However, Iraola revealed that the Cherries’ coaches had informed the players of the potential opening prior to the game.
He said: “We showed them during the week that we’d had a couple of chances in some previous games where Evanilson had been aware of the situation, but we weren’t brave enough to give him the ball (from quick free kicks).
“Luckily for us it all worked out during the game, Evanilson finished it well and we scored the goal.
“Goals from set pieces are very important, and we have already had two goals from corners disallowed this season, so it’s good if we can add more goals from set piece situations.”
The Cherries’ boss was also delighted with the way Evanilson was mobbed by his Bournemouth teammates after grabbing his first goal for the club.
He said: “I loved how his team mates reacted when he scored, as you can tell that they are genuinely happy that he got his goal, they can see how hard he’s been training and how much he wanted that goal.
“He was relieved after he scored, especially after the penalty he missed, as he was disappointed and didn’t want to let down his team mates.”
Iraola won’t be drawn into judging the striker based on his goalsoring however, preferring to assess the Brazilian on his all round game.
He said: “I will not evaluate him based on goals, if he scores a goal but doesn’t play well then he is not good enough for us.
“He has to help us to play well, and he is already getting better without the ball and helping more in the press.”