MANAGER Eddie Howe insisted Saturday's Championship results made “no difference whatsoever” ahead of Cherries’ Sky-televised showdown with Bolton on Monday.

A dramatic late defeat for Middlesbrough at Fulham, coupled with Rotherham coming back to force a 1-1 draw with Norwich, means Cherries could all but secure promotion with a win over Wanderers at Dean Court.

Victory would take second-placed Cherries three points ahead of Boro – with a superior goal difference over the Teessiders – and four clear of Norwich, with just one game remaining.

Watford's 2-0 victory over Brighton in the lunchtime kick-off – and Boro's 4-3 reverse at Craven Cottage where Ross McCormack netted an injury-time winner – confirmed the Hornets' promotion.

However, Howe was quick to play down the significance of the results and said Cherries had to focus their full attention on facing Bolton.

Speaking to the Daily Echo on his way back from watching next Saturday's opponents Charlton at Birmingham, Howe said: “I have maintained all along that results elsewhere do not interest me because there is nothing I can do to control them or any of the other teams.

“All we can do is concentrate and prepare for our game which promises to be a tough encounter against Bolton. Other results make no difference whatsoever because our aim is always to try to win every game.

“Bolton are a strong side and have a very good squad. They have a vastly-experienced manager in Neil Lennon who I have the upmost respect for.

“When you look back at the reverse fixture (a 2-1 win for 10-man Cherries in October), it was one of the highlights of our season.

"We were outstanding and secured a really important victory. We respect them and know we will need to be at our best because they have players that can hurt us.

“We are excited about playing on Monday. The key thing is it is a night game and we do well under the lights at home. It is a chance again for us to show everybody we are a good side and, hopefully, we can do that.”