EDDIE Howe says he has “100 per cent” trust in his Cherries players to always be honest with him about their physical condition.

A storm erupted prior to the international break when Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho slammed members of his squad who declared themselves unfit to play a match at Swansea.

Conversely, Howe benefited from Andrew Surman’s honesty last month, after the midfielder relinquished his starting spot against Spurs, owing to illness.

Howe told the Daily Echo: “I always believe every player wants to play. If a player tells you they’re injured, they genuinely believe they’re injured.

“That’s always been my philosophy. I trust my players one hundred percent. So if a player comes to me and says he’s injured we’ll have a discussion about that injury, about how he feels and then we’ll hopefully come up with the right solution to the problem. Talking is absolutely crucial.”

Indeed, Howe actually considers the issue of players being unwilling to admit to an injury to be the bigger concern.

“I’ve been there,” he said. “The most common thing in football is for a player to play through pain without saying anything. That’s the thing that happens more often than the other way round.

“The guys that play in the Premier League, they’re used to the intensity of it. They know how demanding it is and they’ll often put themselves out there when they’re not one hundred per cent fit."