The £1m manager’s ‘dream’ who is tempting Thomas Tuchel and was told ‘I would renew you forever’ | OneFootball

Bournemouth have unearthed a probable €100m gem this January, but it was four winter windows ago that they accidentally set in motion another key succession plan.

Marcos Senesi will likely leave upon the expiration of his contract in the summer. Andoni Iraola, already well accustomed to handling player turnover, particularly in his Bournemouth backline, said his stand-in captain for the goalless draw with West Ham still has an “open” future as links with Juventus and, unfortunately for the centre-half, Spurs intensify.

Bournemouth have already conceded just one fewer Premier League goal this season than in the entirety of the 2024/25 campaign, but the way in which Kepa Arrizabalaga, Dean Huijsen, Illia Zabarnyi and Milos Kerkez have been simultaneously replaced is testament to their recruitment model.

Even the most optimistic supporter could not possibly have envisaged the role James Hill would come to play in that framework. Former chief executive Neill Blake saying the defender’s arrival from the depths of League One “speaks volumes for this club and the direction the team is moving in under Scott Parker”, in itself speaks volumes about how far they have come.

And for Hill to slot so seamlessly into that arc, still at such a precocious and relatively unseasoned stage of his development, is proof of his and Bournemouth’s patience and brilliance.

The genesis of this Bournemouth streak can be roughly traced back to Hill taking the place of the struggling Bafode Diakiate in late December, when the Cherries were 15th and winless in nine.

Diakite has not started since being bullied by hat-trick scorer Kevin Schade in a 4-1 thrashing at Brentford. His 15 minutes across three appearances since have underlined the difficulties even £34m defenders face acclimatising to an increasingly aggressive, physical league.

But Hill, brought up on a specialised diet at Fleetwood and Blackburn, has taken to his first proper break in the top flight exceptionally well.

Before this season his longest run of Bournemouth starts stood at three; the 24-year-old’s current sequence is at nine and counting, with Bournemouth losing just once in that time and seeing a marked improvement in their defensive record.

Iraola has described Hill as “the dream scenario for a coach”.

“I told him when he was not playing, I would renew you for 10 seasons. I would renew you forever because it gives quality to the squads,” the Spaniard continued.

“Because they don’t play and they train top level,” he added. “They come every Monday, the plus one, that is a difficult day for training, and they train at their best. And I’m very happy that now he’s getting the rewards.”

As are Bournemouth. This is a two-way street, a manager yet again being handsomely rewarded for his faith in a player others might well have overlooked in the same circumstances.

It might even be a perfectly timed breakthrough to catch more critical eyes.

“It’s very good for us because they are still young players, English players, and that is always difficult to find for us,” Iraola added of Hill and teammate Alex Scott, picked and praised by Thomas Tuchel for the November internationals.

The German’s justification then can give encouragement to Hill now: “He took another step and becomes a very a regular starter for Bournemouth and they are in the top third of the league. They are over-performing constantly and he is a starter for them.”

And no player has impressed or over-performed more for eighth-placed Bournemouth this season than Hill, their defensive mountain. It might be an idea to renew that passport just in case.