ALFIE MERRITT: Post-Match Insights from a Promising Young Defender

Interview By Josh Holloway, Tom Ellerby, Tom Whittick

Calm, composed, and confident beyond his years — Alfie Merritt has stepped up admirably to represent AFC Bournemouth’s U21s amidst a recent injury crisis.

The teenager has embraced the challenge with remarkable poise, quickly earning recognition as an exciting prospect within the academy setup.

After the recent clash against Derby County, the young left-back took a few moments to share his thoughts with Constant AFCB, reflecting on his recent advancement and the match generally.

Q: What does it feel like to be playing with and the U21s given your younger age, how are you finding it all?

A: “Yeah, of course it is a big step up from the U18s to the U21s but I feel as if I’m starting to get used to it now - the more games I get, the more experience I get. I’m finding it alright, but like I said it is a big step up.”

Q: How did you feel going up against Lennon Wheeldon today given his physicality?

A: “Obviously, he is a big lad. When you’ve got to play against someone whose big and physical - you’ve got to approach it a certain way. I felt that I was quicker than him, it was less of a problem for me when he wanted to make those runs in behind. However, when he held the ball up, it was a bit more challenging for myself. His hold-up play was fantastic today, he’s a good player generally.”

Q: With the injury crisis, a lot of U21s have been called up the 1st Team - do you think we played a weakened side today because of this?

A: “I think that like you said, we have obviously got a few younger players, including myself, being involved today - but that’s what you want as players. Being involved and playing up is a challenge, it’s good for us to get opportunities. I definitely would not say it is a weak team today, I would say that we’re just younger players. We’re all good players and I think that we can all handle the U21s given the chance.”

Thank you to Alfie Merritt for his time, it was a tough game against a strong academy of older players - but our Cherries put in a solid performance and they should all hold their heads up high.

We’re excited to see them progress up through the academy setup.