Howe speaks of admiration for Burnley’s team spirit

Eddie Howe has said his Bournemouth side were unable to compete with the strong characteristics of his former club Burnley.

Benik Afobe and George Boyd swapped strikes in the second half before a 90th-minute rocket from Charlie Daniels briefly hinted at a second big comeback in a week after Bournemouth’s 4-3 defeat of Liverpool.

“You know when you come here what you’re going to face,” said Howe of the club he left in 2012.

“They have a philosophy and stick to it and you’ve got to admire the spirit and determination they play with. It’s unusual to see a team in the Premier League play that way, but you have to respect it and deal with it.

“We didn’t do that well enough. We didn’t deal with their direct threat, found ourselves 2-0 down early and then you leave yourself a mountain to climb.”

Howe found one positive in the eighth-minute ovation afforded to Harry Arter, whose wife gave birth to a stillborn daughter a year ago.

“I’d like to say thank you to the Burnley fans for their reaction and what they did for Harry,” he said.

“It’s really good to see football fans unite in tragedy and understand players are human beings. It was a special moment.”