Bournemouth have released a statement to apologise for their communication after facing backlash from fans.The Premier League side recently let go of one of their long-term employees via an email ahead of the new season.Bournemouth released a statement after facing backlash over treatment of their long-term employeeGettyIn a post on social media, a relative revealed the details of a message received by the Cherries staff member, who is in his 70s.They posted an image of the generic email that had been sent out, which informed the employee that they were not having their contract renewed for the 2026/27 campaign. “A relative of ours has been working on match days for Bournemouth for nearly 60 years,” the post read. “Programme selling, car park duty and various other roles. 2 weeks before the season starts, he received this from the club. A disgusting approach. @jimfrevola club should be ashamed.”Bournemouth and CEO Jim Frevola were slammed for the ‘disgusting approach’, with over one million people viewing the post and thousands of fans reacting with huge backlash due to the club not informing their staff in a more personable manner.But Frevola then directly replied back to the relative, saying: “Thanks for bringing this to my attention. I’ll look into this immediately.”Bournemouth release statementAnd just a couple of hours after that reply, the club then went on to release an official statement regarding the matter.They admitted that they should have handled the dismissal of the employee in a better manner and that they would be contacting those impacted by the email.“AFC Bournemouth has seen the concerns raised regarding changes to some of our matchday staffing arrangements,” the club wrote.“We have reviewed the way these changes were communicated to some long-serving members of our matchday team and recognise that it did not reflect the standards we expect of ourselves as a club.“People who have given many years of service to AFC Bournemouth deserve to be treated with appreciation and respect. View Tweet: https://x.com/afcbournemouth?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw“We are contacting those affected directly to listen to their concerns and review their individual circumstances.“As part of our preparations for the new season, we have made changes to a number of matchday roles and working requirements as we continue to strengthen the safety and security of the stadium, its perimeter and surrounding areas. “These changes are important, but so too is the way we communicate with and treat the people who have served our club. We should have handled this better, and we will do better.“We are grateful to everyone who has contributed to AFC Bournemouth over the years, and particularly those who have served the club for decades.”Controversial start to the seasonBournemouth would not have wanted any negativity to start the new Premier League season, which starts next week.The Cherries kick off their campaign with a very tough clash away at Manchester City on Sunday, August 23.Bournemouth boss Rose will want to start the season positively after some unwanted controversyGettyThey then face Everton, Newcastle, Brentford and Liverpool to round out their first five top-flight fixtures.New manager Marco Rose will also lead the club into their first-ever European campaign in the Europa League.In April, Rose took over from Andoni Iraola, who left to join Liverpool, replacing Arne Slot as boss at Anfield.