CHERRIES boss Eddie Howe has said he would be happy to have a gay footballer in his squad.

Howe, in an interview with Winq, said he would sign an openly-gay player “without hesitation”.

“I would sign a gay player without hesitation if they were the right player for the club, absolutely no doubt about it,” Howe told the magazine.

“The football and the footballer’s character are the things that define a career, not sexuality.

“As a manager, you like to try to prepare yourself for every scenario that you may face. You think about every eventuality and being prepared for anything.

"So I would like to think I have the right mentality for when that day comes – and it will – when one of my players walks into my office to have that conversation.

“It’s only a matter of time, like everywhere else, the face of football is changing. Football is heading in a direction of openness and acceptance and that’s the way it should be.

“The first player to come out in the Premier League era will be defining, it will be a real breakthrough moment. And I think when that happens other players will follow suit.”