"WE DESERVE TO WIN!" Bill Foley SPEAKS on facing Milan in Europe & Premier League expectations

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Bournemouth owner Bill Foley on facing AC Milan, Premier League expectations and long-term goals

talkSPORT interviews Bournemouth owner Bill Foley about the Europa League tie with AC Milan, the team's Premier League progress, Marco Rose, stadium plans, player retention and transfer plans, and the club's long-term ambition. Foley says Bournemouth should improve on last season, should not view beating Milan as an upset, and can go far in Europe.

Bournemouth owner Bill Foley spoke to talkSPORT's Alex Crook ahead of their huge Europa League tie against European giants AC Milan and explains why he doesn't think it would be an "upset" if Bournemouth win, his stadium expansion plans and why he expects the team to get better this season. Subscribe: https://youtube.com/c/talkSPORT?subconfirmation=1 Enjoyed this YouTube video? 😍 🖥️ talkSPORT's Website: https://talksport.com/ 📲 talkSPORT's X/Twitter: https://x.com/talkSPORT 📷 talkSPORT's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/talksport/?hl=en 👤 talkSPORT's Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/talkSPORT/ 📱 talkSPORT's Tik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@talksport ? 🔴 Download the talkSPORT app HERE! - https://talksport.com/apps/ 🔎 Want to see if you feature on our YouTube channel? Check out our Best talkSPORT callers playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLFVMnSsi04LGLa9pS9xDvme-Gjmlu2 talkSPORT PremierLeague

Transcript

Thanks for joining us first of all, always a pleasure to speak to you. This week of all weeks, Bournemouth against AC Milan, one of the iconic names in European football. Could you have imagined when you took over the football club that you'd have a night like this to look forward to so soon into your tenure? >> Well, I did predict we'd play in Europe. I thought it I thought it would be within 5 years. We did it in three, which is uh set unrealistic expectations and then exceed them, which the team has done that. And now there are people saying, "Well, gee, you did so well last year. How can you do it again? The team's tired. You've You've worked and they've been working so hard." And that is just an excuse. It's not a reason. It's an excuse. There's no There's no reason why we can't do better this year than we did last year. And that's my expectation. We should be better. And we have a we have a a really good team, a young team, but a really good team. They just have to be a bit more consistent. And if we do that, we'll advance. We'll be great against a team like AC Milan, which is an honor to play them. Little Little tin pot Bournemouth playing AC Milan. >> And And obviously they've made a really good start to their domestic season, but with the strength of the Premier League now, it wouldn't be the greatest upset in the world, would it, if Bournemouth were to come out victorious in this fixture? >> I don't think it would be an upset. I think we deserve to win. We're at home. Our fans are enthusiastic. They're in They're in a starting to get be in a brand new stadium in terms of hospitality and seats. So, we we just have the two two corners in, but by next summer we'll have the other two corners in, plus a new South Stand, and we'll be up to about 18,000 seats, which is a really good start compared to 11,200. >> How does that change your plans moving forward in terms of of one day delivering an entirely new stadium? >> Yeah, it's going to be difficult. Um you know, what what we really should do is we should rebuild the main stand and make it a proper main stand. The trouble is we if we do that we shut down you know, 3,000, 4,000 seats for a whole season and that's that's difficult for us. Um So, it's a it's a question mark we have in our minds about what do we do next? We have a plan for the East Stand and North Stand to add about um it's about 1,200 or 1,300 seats. But, when we got into the cost analysis it became very, very expensive based up on the way we had to add into the stand. So, you were still evaluating, but we do know we're we'll have a new South Stand, we'll have all the wings done. Our hospitality is done, the new hospitality and it's it's beautiful. It's wonderful and we've moved up obviously the pricing on hospitality to a about to a much different level and sold out. So, there's the demand is the demand is here in Bournemouth and people are proud of this team. They're proud of what they've done so far. We just have to keep on delivering. >> And what about the start of the season in general? Bit of a slow burner when it came to the Premier League. Obviously, you were there at the weekend to see Marco Rose pick up his first three points. Not dissimilar in some ways, I guess, to how Andoni Iraola started his reign in charge. >> Yeah, Andoni of course was nine games and it tied, I think, three at that time, something like that. And then won the ninth game against Burnley. So, we're a little ahead of schedule compared to Andoni, but the changes Marco's making are not they're not like what not not like the changes Andoni made in terms of complete restructure of our offense and our defensive our defensive our defensive plans. Um so, you know, I feel like uh we let a few games get away. Um and again, this what I was talking about in terms of consistency. We have to be more consistent with our shots. We have to have to execute a little bit better. But the team is on it. They're It's It's a It's a really good team and they're playing like a team, which is the most important thing to me. >> And what was it that appealed to you as a club about Marco Rose because you moved very quickly to identify Andoni successor when it became clear that he would be leaving the club. >> Yeah, well, we actually did started doing our our background background checks early on the even as early as last early last February because we felt like because we could not get a commitment out of Andoni at that time and he kept on saying, "Well, I'm not sure, not sure." Well, the reality was we had to be prepared. And so our first choice was Marco Rose. He was He was available. And so we when we realized that Andoni would be moving on, we immediately got very serious about bringing Marco in. And we think we have a We think we have the right coach for the right time in this in this team's progression and development. We I really have a lot of confidence in Marco. He's a He's a player's coach. He's empathetic, but he's also very demanding. So, I'm happy with where we are. And now we have to get ready for the next transfer window to see what we need and what we need to add to make sure we drive on during the second half of the season. And I'm I'm convinced we'll do we'll have much better second half of the first half as we go as we go forward over the next next couple of months. But the team is ready. There's no question about it. >> He's also a manager who knows what it's like to go deep into European competition. He was a semi-finalist in the Europa League at one of his previous clubs. So, based on what you've said, how much faith you have in the manager and in your team, how far can you go on this European journey? When you think Aston Villa won it last season, we've seen teams like Palace and West Ham win European competitions as well. >> I think we can I think we can go all the way. I don't want to make a prediction that we will cuz that I end up I end up getting in trouble when I start making predictions. They usually come true, but I don't want to take a chance. But I like our team. I like what we've done so far in in Europa League in Europa League. And we have a a big game on Thursday. And then we and we have a a total of another what, five games? But if we can get to 15 or 16 or 17 points, we believe we'll be in the final eight. And that's good. We avoid the knockout round. And then we drive on. Once you're Once you're in the final eight, anything can happen, in my opinion. >> And And when I spoke to you previously, um you were talking about the fact your vision for Bournemouth was to become the club where people wanted to stay, wanted to put down roots. Mainly talking about players, but obviously you couldn't keep Antoine Semenyo and Antoine Semenyo left for for Manchester City in January. How close are you you think to to realizing that dream, making sure you actually these top names are going to commit to Bournemouth for the long haul? >> We're We're close. You know, we have to respect the fact that a lot of a lot of these a lot of our our players are younger and they've come to Bournemouth on the on the expectation that they'll get time to play and perhaps move on to a bigger team and we recognize that. Um Thiago's job and my job are really the same and that's to make players feel comfortable, provide them with the infrastructure they need to understand that we're serious about what we're doing and uh notwithstanding the audio-visual issues we had this morning, we're we're in a we're in a brand new performance center and it's state-of-the-art. Uh they can't I was just down down having lunch with the players. The canteen is terrific. The food is fantastic. So, we're we're happy with where we are and we believe we'll start making progress in terms of retaining key talent. It It may not be this year. It may not be next year in terms of everyone, but we're close. We're close. We have to prove to the players this is a place they want to be and that they want to stay and they don't want to move on because that's the way we really build a successful team. >> And what about the the way you structure it because again you you said to me previously that you were in a position financially to compete with any team in the Premier League. Does Does it come to the stage where players earning 100,000 pounds a week at Bournemouth becomes commonplace because obviously it hasn't been up to this point? >> I think I think earning that kind of number at Bournemouth should be commonplace and we should be prepared to meet that meet that challenge. Part of it is ensuring that we have our hospitality in the right spot, ensuring that we have the right sponsorship and ticketing. So that's why we need need more people in the stands, more people coming to the game early, staying longer, staying after the game. And that's all part of our plan in terms of developing fan zones and and more activities to keep people consistently here at the stadium. And that's the way we have the cash flow and the to to really maintain what we've already started. So we've got a long ways to go. We're We're not nearly We're not nearly finished at this point. >> Can I ask you about one player in particular whose future has been subject of plenty of newspaper stories and plenty of radio airtime. Alex Scott obviously you managed to keep him in the summer. I know there was at least one offer from Chelsea that came in. Talk again over the last few days that if somebody is willing to pay 100 million pounds in January, you might be open to selling. Can you give us the latest on his situation? >> Well, I don't want to sell anyone at any time, anywhere. Now, I have to defer to Thiago, my my president of football and he really comes to me with his ideas and his plans. At this point, we're convinced we're the right place for Alex to be, for Alex to stay, and we'll keep on addressing contract issues with Alex as we move through this year. We'd love to have Alex stay here and sign a new contract and be part of this team long haul. And we're still working on it. We're We haven't We haven't given up. But sometimes players get stars in their eyes and they they think that Chelsea's the right place to go or or Man City. I hated losing Samuel. I mean, what a great guy he was. But to show you his character, you know, he didn't have to play those last two games with us. And he stayed and he played, and he scored a winning goal. In very In the very last game. So, you know, we believe if we keep on providing infrastructure, uh a common common thread of leadership across this team, they will start keeping more and more players, and people will be surprised about that, and they'll be able to earn substantial wages here because we're we're close. We're very close. >> And you mentioned that you're planning already for the upcoming January transfer window. Do you think it could be a a busy January because the summer was was relatively quiet, obviously apart from the the change of manager, but you managed to keep a lot of your best players. You didn't really have to do too much replenishment with the squad. What what is the plan for January? >> Well, I'm here today. We're going to meet with Tiago after team photo, and we're going to start talking about the January transfer window and look at our needs. And I think we all know what our needs may be and where we need to go. We have a very good team, and we're happy with the team. But if we can supplement it this January with a one or two other key players, and we keep on developing the players we have, we'll have a set We'll have a very successful second half to the season. I'm I'm I'm actually very, very confident. And I have a little talk with the players after after our after we speak today and after our team photo. And I'm going to make sure they understand that what my expectations are. And my expectations are to win. To win, to win, to win, period. >> And you've mentioned Tiago um a few times now. It's clear that you hold him in very high regard. Obviously, the role of a a sporting director has come under scrutiny in the wake of what Lisandro Martinez at Manchester United had to say last week. How important is it that you've got the right person in charge of your recruitment? And I guess with that in mind, we talked about players and managers moving on. Is there a fear actually that some of the bigger clubs might look in Tiago's direction? >> I am trying to really take care of Tiago. He's uh as part of our part of our plan, Tiago is now a shareholder and an owner owner of Black Knight Football Club. And he continues to earn more percentages of ownership as he as he goes through this season and next season and the season after that. And Tiago and I are very we're very simpatico. We really get along and we communicate really well. We almost know what the other one's thinking sometimes before we even say it. And so I'm having a great time with Tiago. Um I'm my job is to keep him happy as well, just like players. Keep him happy, keep him here, and go on and have a very successful season. Simple. >> And obviously, you've got a few clubs in that portfolio now, football clubs that is. But you've also been linked with maybe buying a rugby club in the form of the Exeter Chiefs. Is is there is there anything happening in that department? >> Yeah, we've actually closed on that. So, we actually have acquired controlling interest in Exeter. Um we took the advantage of that situation in that it's it's close to uh close to Bournemouth, so it's drivable. Uh it's a a maybe the second or the third biggest sport in the UK. So, it's it's got a wellspring of supporters and we believe we can do something similar to Exeter that we've done at Bournemouth. We can help help the business side, bring a little more sophistication, bring in a few people that are more focused on sponsorship and maybe high-level ticketing. Um but more importantly, we can do more for the players and we can make the players feel feel like they're more part of the team. So, same game plan, same same same same passport to success as as we as we proven with the Golden Knights, with Auckland FC, with Bournemouth AFC Bournemouth. It's a Fortunately, not everyone copies us quite right. So, it's good. I'm glad Flattery is the most Flattery is what the most important compliment or rather showing showing the copying is the most is the most important compliment that you can give a team and give a player and they're doing that with us. They're trying. >> I always admire your energy and enthusiasm. I have done ever since I I first met you when you were trying to buy the the football club. You said you had a five-year plan to get into Europe. You've done that in three. So, tell me now, what does the next two years look like in your head? What's the ambition if we speak again in a couple of years' time? Where would you like Bournemouth to be because of course they've never won a major trophy. That must be an ambition of yours. >> Number one, win a trophy, win a major trophy. Number two, champions. Play in the Champions League and do it consistently. Be numbers 7 6 5 4 in the Premier League in this small town this in this beautiful place Bournemouth Bournemouth, UK. Consistency and finish in the top in in the top level, top performers level. That's that's the goal. I haven't changed my goals. I've just accelerated my goals. >> Brilliant. That's fantastic, Bill. Thanks very much as always. Enjoy the Milan game. It was brilliant last week. The atmosphere before kickoff, the big Tifo and I mean, this is probably the biggest game in in Bournemouth's history. So, enjoy every moment. >> I I certainly will. Thanks. It's great to see you, Alex.