Iraola praises Scott for strong start to the season but believes there is still room for improvement

The 21-year-old made his debut in the opening game of the season for Nottingham Forest but has since been used as a substitute in matches against Newcastle United, Everton, and Chelsea as he strives to develop his skills under Iraola's guidance.

Speaking to the Daily Echo, Iraola spoke about the midfielder and what he expects from him. 

“I think we played a very good 60 minutes against Chelsea. Very, very good. 

“Then we started naturally, we started a little bit to decline and to defend a little bit lower than we were doing before. 

“We lost, I don't know, 5/10 metres. And it gives them a little bit of more breath and they felt less the pressure and I made the change (to bring Scott on) just because of this. 

“I felt that we were already losing a little bit of the duels and we needed some energy. 

“We couldn't alter this scenario, I think in the second half even if it was quite level the game.” 

Despite his strong performance against Chelsea, the Cherries boss says there is room for improvement for the playmaker. 

“I don't ask very different things, you know, we know his level, he trains well, he's very committed defensively also because we know his quality on the ball and I think he has played every game,” Iraola said. 

“He has been involved in every game and he has to continue. 

“It's like all the young players, like I say a lot with Milos, with Zaba, luckily for them it's not the end product. 

“He still has room for improvement and he has to continue adding things to his play.” 

Scott joined Bournemouth from Bristol City in August 2023 for a fee of £20M after he was named Championship young player of the year and now under Iraola he must up his game to justify his price tag and stake his claim in the first team.