EDDIE Howe has spoken of his admiration for John Terry – but revealed no negotiations with Chelsea had taken place.

Former England skipper Terry has been heavily linked with a loan move to Vitality Stadium this week.

Cherries boss Howe neither confirmed nor denied his interest but did admit there had been no contact with the title-chasing Blues over the 36-year-old centre-half.

Howe said: "There have been no negotiations with Chelsea at all.

"I admire John Terry greatly as a footballer. He was one of my favourite central defenders I looked at when I was playing, to try to emulate and get close to.

"But there's been no discussions, no meeting – nothing."

Nathan Ake has just returned to Chelsea from Cherries after his parent club recalled the centre-half from his loan to bolster their ranks.

Asked about building Cherries' relationship further with the Stamford Bridge club, Howe said: "They haven't offered us anyone else. Hopefully, the relationship is strong and will grow.

""We've taken a couple of players from Chelsea in the past two seasons (Christian Atsu spent time on loan at Cherries) and they are a club we respect immensely.

"They develop their players very well so we are only too keen to enhance that relationship. But it depends on the individual player you are talking about and what their path is.

"Hopefully, the two mirror between us and them."

Howe's options at centre-half have taken a hit of late due to the suspension of Simon Francis, although Marc Wilson is set for a quicker-than-expected return to fitness.

A suspected hamstring injury sustained by Wilson in the FA Cup defeat to Millwall was revealed to be a bout of cramp. In addition, youngster Baily Cargill has returned from a loan spell at Gillingham.

The boss added: "There is no guarantee we will do anything in that position. What we are doing at the moment is assessing our options and seeing which decision we make.

"We have some good players here who can fill that void, so it will be up to them, hopefully in the next game, to show I don't need to sign anyone."