Andoni Iraola breaks silence on next move ahead of Bournemouth exit amid Crystal Palace and La Liga links

The 43-year-old manager’s imminent exit was officially announced on Tuesday, marking the conclusion of a highly successful three-year spell at the Vitality Stadium. With his contract set to expire in the summer, widespread reports have suggested that Crystal Palace have tabled a multi-million-pound contract to secure his services. However, Iraola firmly dismissed suggestions that a pre-agreed deal prompted his exit.

"The decision was not about any other club. There has been no other club involved, it was about continuing here or not continuing here," he stated, shutting down rumours of an immediate switch.

Despite steering the Cherries to a ninth-placed finish last season and currently sitting 11th with just six games remaining, the tactician remains completely undecided about his future.

"I don’t know what I’m going to do next season. I don’t know if I’m going to coach a team, a club, coach a national team, coach in this continent, I’m not going to coach. I have no idea what’s going to happen," he explained. "I don’t have any rush to know it. I’ve taken a big decision for me now in this moment. Now I want to focus on what will happen in these six games. It’ll be massive for us. There’s going to be time to think, if we have to think, on something else."

Speaking ahead of Saturday’s crucial fixture against Newcastle, the departing boss admitted that leaving Bournemouth was incredibly difficult.

"It has been a decision that has taken me a lot of time to take, it hasn’t been a clear decision," he noted. "Always during this process, this season, I’ve been talking to the club about the situations, they were very aware this could happen. There is not always one main reason. The decision I’ve taken is because probably I don’t want to risk the feeling I have right now of satisfaction of these three seasons. You try to envision yourself in a possible fourth season, a possible fifth season and everything costs more. We as human beings get tired of watching the same phases. I suppose I decided this was the right moment to put an end to this journey that for me has been really special."

As Iraola prepares to bid farewell, Bournemouth have already begun planning for the future. The club are reportedly closing in on appointing former RB Leipzig manager Marco Rose as his replacement. Meanwhile, Iraola will weigh his lucrative options across Europe before making a final decision on his managerial career.