When Bournemouth played Reading in November, Jason Tindall’s side found themselves two goals down on the stroke of half-time. And yet – despite clearly being in a spot of bother – there was never a sense of panic among the Cherries XI.

Like an 11-year-old playing FIFA, they just sat up from their slouched position and said ‚right, I’m going to start playing properly now‘ – and that’s exactly what they did, smashing home four second-half goals to romp to a 4-2 victory.

However, when they found themselves in the exact same position in the reverse fixture on Friday evening, there was no such swagger.

Again they looked like the aforementioned 11-year-old, but this time he’d lost his dad in a supermarket, and there was a look of panic and fear on their face as they desperately searched for someone to help.

There was no-one who could help, and even a late consolation only served to add a crumb of comfort to Tindall’s side as they headed back to the south coast with a 3-1 defeat.

Having looked like the only team who could hand onto the coat tails of league leaders Norwich, the Cherries have now picked up just one win in seven games, a run which includes four defeats – double the amount they suffered in the first half of the season.

FT!@ReadingFC register a ???? win!#EFL | #SkyBetChampionship pic.twitter.com/dbUKJhqHKQ

— Sky Bet Championship (@SkyBetChamp) January 29, 2021

The free-flowing, fast paced, dynamic football that saw them comfortably perched beneath the Canaries in the automatic promotion spots seems a thing of the past, and instead there’s a laboured, cumbersome and almost lazy feel to their play.

The January signing of Jack Wilshere was lauded by some as a masterstroke, and the former Arsenal man is unquestionably a talented footballer. But his half-time introduction against Reading was enough to suggest he has no place in this Bournemouth side if they’re to get a foothold in the promotion race.

The Cherries‘ stellar early-season form was built on pace and energy, and Wilshere’s introduction made an already faltering machine splutter to an ungraceful halt. Recycling possession and keeping things slowly ticking over in midfield as all well and good, but not when your side are 3-0 down.

While it might seem premature to suggest a team’s promotion hopes could already be over when they’re still in the play-off places, it’s not as ludicrous as you might think.

Tindall’s men are still in the top six, but there’s every opportunity they’ll be ousted from their position over the coming weeks, and there’s nothing in their play that suggests they’ll put a stop to their torrid run of form.

The likes of Josh King and David Brooks should be replicating the likes of Emiliano Buendia at Norwich – clearly too good for this league and tearing teams apart with regularity – but instead they’re just labouring towards the end of the season, as though they can’t wait for it to be over so they can jump ship.

Whether the Bournemouth hierarchy choose to keep faith with rookie boss Tindall remains to be seen, but one thing is for sure – something needs to change on the south coast, otherwise the Cherries will definitely miss out on promotion this season. And with some of their underperforming top players still attracting interest from elsewhere, they could be set for a prolonged stay in the second tier.