BOSS Eddie Howe has stressed the importance of keeping Callum Wilson at Dean Court in the face of mounting speculation surrounding Cherries’ star striker.

Wilson has been linked with a host of leading Premier League clubs having taken the Championship by storm during his first season with Cherries.

The 23-year-old spearheaded their promotion by netting 23 goals in all competitions and started all but one league game.

Wilson, who joined Cherries from Coventry, also won international recognition when he came off the bench for England under-21s against France in November.

Just 12 months into a four-year contract after his £2million-plus move, Wilson’s exploits saw him linked with Chelsea and Aston Villa during the season.

The Daily Mirror this week claimed Tottenham were keen to make Wilson one of their first summer signings with the article suggesting Cherries would “not stand in the way of £12million-rated Wilson”.

Asked how important it would be to keep Wilson, Howe said: “It is important we keep all our best players. We can’t go into the Premier League and lose players and that is one thing I would like to make very clear to everybody.

“We need to keep our best players and build on that to have any chance of winning games at that level so we will be very determined to keep the likes of Callum and the other guys who will always be linked with clubs because they have done very well.”

Former Cherries star Luther Blissett, who earned a £1million move to AC Milan after finishing as the leading goalscorer in the top flight in 1982-83, has advised Wilson to remain at Dean Court.

Blissett told the Daily Echo: “It sounds as if he wants to make a go of it at Bournemouth. As long as they show faith in him, I think he will be more than happy to stay and prove himself with a group of players he has got to know.

“He will want to do it for them in the Premier League because they have given him the opportunity to show what he has been capable of this season.

“It is an unknown quantity and concept for pretty much every player so will be good to go there with people around you who you know, trust and have been through a few battles with.

“When I went up with Watford, we started the following season with about nine of the same players and went into the division with more confidence and belief because we knew each other.

“That would be a very strong position for him and the club to be in. They know each other, they have a system they play and all believe in it. It has been attractive to watch and has been very fruitful with the goals they have scored.”