Can Cherries continue to bloom under Rose?

[Getty Images] "After the Lord Mayor's Show" is a phrase which may not be familiar to new Bournemouth boss Marco Rose, given he hails from Leipzig rather than London. Or to put it another way, "How do you follow that?" As the German prepares for his first competitive game in charge of the Cherries on Sunday, he will be aware that the Dorset club has been riding a wave of the most successful period in its history, prior to his arrival. On the other hand, most new managers are thrown in at the deep end, with a club in disarray, its on-field struggles being the reason why a vacancy was created, which is not the case here. After Rose's appointment was announced in April, he has had the luxury of a brief handover with his predecessor Andoni Iraola as the Spaniard led Bournemouth to the heady heights of sixth place and European qualification before departing. Rose has inherited a reasonably settled squad, compared to the five big departures with which Iraola had to cope a year ago. Bournemouth's reputation for shrewd succession planning has continued in various areas, from the recruitment of Antonio Silva from Benfica to replace Tottenham-bound Marcos Senesi, to the appointment of former Cherries favourite Matt Ritchie to succeed Simon Francis as technical director. While Silva has slotted into central defence already, less has been seen of fellow new recruits Alvaro Rodriguez and Juanlu Sanchez so far, and Rose's first challenge has been to cope with a handful of pre-season injuries, the most notable of which has ruled out last season's top scorer Eli Junior Kroupi for a few months. Rose also inherits a record-breaking 18-match unbeaten run which will be put to the test at Manchester City on Sunday, at a venue where the Cherries have only ever tasted defeat. But with the Europa League draw just over a week away, it promises to be a season like no other. Explore Bournemouth content on BBC Sounds