Bournemouth lost to Brentford 0-2 in the second round of the 2025/26 English League Cup after conceding a goal and having Julian Araujo sent off. Andoni Iraola said that his lineup adjustments were ineffective and that he was the first person to be blamed.

In the 34th minute, Ayel headed the ball into the penalty area, and Carvalho received it and shot it in, helping Brentford take the lead 1-0. In the 65th minute of the second half, Carvalho passed the ball past the defense, and Igor Thiago received Frank Onyeka's cross and pushed the ball into the goal, helping Brentford continue to lead Bournemouth 2-0.

In the second half stoppage time, Julian Araujo was sent off due to accumulating yellow cards. In the end, Bournemouth lost 0-2 to Brentford at home and failed to advance to the next round.

Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola said in an interview, "The adjustments I made to the squad were too big. There are many players in the team who need to grow and improve so that they can reach the level we require of them."

"It's really difficult because we want to give players more playing time, but we have to continue to be competitive. This is the only way to deal with it, there is no other way. Now that we have passed the pre-season stage, every attempt has consequences, and we didn't perform well in this game."

"I hate being eliminated from a tournament because it means the team doesn't have a chance to move forward and doesn't give other players more playing time," he said.

"Our level of play wasn't up to par. If we want to go further in this tournament, the team has to give a lot, but we didn't show our best."

In addition, Bournemouth will travel to Tottenham Hotspur in the next round of the Premier League. After defeating Wolves 1-0 in the last round of the Premier League, Bournemouth is currently ranked 9th in the standings.

Andoni Iraola also added, "We played two great games before, but the performance in this game was a step backward. I adjusted a lot of positions, and when these adjustments did not work, I was the first person to be blamed."