NEIL Moss has described the Cherries manager’s job as one of the toughest in the country – but he believes Eddie Howe is the right man to make a success of it.

Talented young manager Howe completed a minor miracle in leading Cherries to a dramatic relegation escape last season against the backdrop of boardroom uncertainty.

And with last week’s Daily Echo revelations about Danny Hollands serving a 14-day notice on the club over unpaid wages, Howe’s task does not look like getting easier any time soon.

But Moss, the popular ex-keeper who played alongside Howe for the Dean Court club, has backed his old team-mate to rise to the challenge.

“The bonus is that Eddie’s a young manager, he’s highly ambitious and he wants to make a right go of it,” he told the Echo.

“A more experienced manager might say ‘I don’t want this’, but I’m sure Eddie will plough on.

“It’s a really young management team. They’re dead keen and dead eager and people like that will give the players a lift.

“The players will know that Eddie is battling and the least they can do is give their best for him.”

The Barton-on-Sea born keeper, who now runs coaching school Between the Sticks (www.betweenthesticks.co.uk), added: “As much as they want to win, the players have got problems like everyone else.

“They’ve got mortgages to pay, none of them are millionaires and quite a few have young families.

“Their primary concern is to look after their families like every other guy out there.

“They deserve better but it’s not just Bournemouth. All these clubs are struggling.”

Meanwhile, Howe has reassured the club’s fans that he remains fully committed to driving the team forward.

He said: “We’re desperate to do well next season.

“You have to plan ahead and be organised and me and Jason (Tindall) have near enough put everything that we want in place.

“But ultimately, like any management team, we’re going to be judged by what happens on the pitch and we need to get our playing squad put together as quickly as we can.”

With the club operating under a transfer embargo, Howe is limited in what he can do regarding player recruitment.

But his squad building began to take shape last month when he handed three-month deals to youth team graduates George Webb and Steve Hutchings, while he has also offered fresh terms to the six first-team players whose deals expire this summer.

  • The Echo was yesterday unable to contact Cherries co-owner Paul Baker for an update on the club’s takeover or any other off-field issues.