We’ll be heading right up table soon’

BOURNEMOUTH skipper Steve Cook is convinced his Cherries team-mates will soon start receiving wider acclaim.

While the club’s captain says he is happy “to operate under the radar”, he believes that his colleagues should not do likewise.

This season is the Cherries’ fifth successive season in the top flight and Cook has warned that when injuries clear Eddie Howe’s squad is capable of challenging others outside the top six.

He said: “I don’t think Bournemouth players get recognised as much as they should by people outside the game. I think that’s a shame.

“But I think it will come. Joshua King (below) has scored a lot of goals.

“So has Callum Wilson. Simon Francis is a top-quality player, Nathan Ake likewise. I could go through the whole team.

“Perhaps it works in our favour because, if we don’t play well or don’t win games, then we don’t get criticised outside the club. We don’t have that pressure.

“We put pressure on ourselves. We have to create it to push ourselves more because it doesn’t come from outside the club.

“The core of our success has been hard work.

“We can’t rely on individuals to win us games. We need nine or 10 players to play really well and that’s going to continue to bring us success.

“You have to have goals.

“Every year we come back to preseason and have meetings about what we want to achieve.

“I don’t think finishing 12th or 11th is an achievement and we, as players, want more.

“We want to push ourselves towards the best. When we get the injured lads back, we think this squad is up there with the likes of Leicester, West Ham and Everton, who have spent a lot of money.”