Callum Wilson 'maximising every moment of his career' after serious knee injuries

Wilson has made a flying start to the season for Cherries, scoring in the win against Cardiff City before netting a stunning solo goal in the victory at West Ham.

The 26-year-old had missed a gilt-edged chance in the first half at London Stadium but made up for it on the hour when he brilliantly beat three West Ham defenders and slotted past Lukasz Fabianski.

Wilson, who returned from his second major knee injury in October last year, will hope to continue his fine form when Everton visit Vitality Stadium on Saturday.

Reflecting on the frontman’s journey, boss Howe said: “Whenever you get a long-term injury, you go through a lot mentally. There is a lot of soul-searching and you have a lot of time to think, which is not always a good thing.

“There are those questions you ask. How am I going to come back? Am I going to be as strong, quick and as good as I was before?

“But I had no doubt Callum would come back well because of how strong he is and how well he deals with those moments.

“It seems to have made him more determined to maximise every moment of his career.

“I’m so pleased for him regarding the way he has started the season because that will give him a real lift.

“He did well for us last season, let’s not forget that. He’s been back a long time now and is kicking on this season.

“I’ve never seen a change in his mentality. I’ve never seen him, mentally, make bad decisions or look in really low moments.

“Credit to him and his family for that because it’s not easy – I’ve been there. I was a long-term injured player for most of the second half of my career.

“It is very difficult but he has been superb in that respect.”

Asked if Cherries had been forced to work in a different way with Wilson since his injuries, Howe said: “No, we don’t. We have our plans which we have for all our players. They have detailed programmes which they work towards, whether that’s before training or after training. That is tailored to each player.

“In terms of the training pitch – no. And he has never wanted that either. He wants to be treated the same as everyone else.”

Having earlier been denied by Fabianski, Wilson made no mistake at the second time of asking.

Howe added: “I think that’s a sign of a good goalscorer. You can’t dwell on misses because that’s always going to happen. All you can do is make sure you try to take the next one.

“The most impressive thing about the goal was the finish because after that kind of run and the fatigue he may have felt, to still strike the ball well made it a great goal.”