EDDIE Howe hailed Cherries’ efforts without the ball after they confounded possession statistics to deliver a dazzling 4-0 victory over Chelsea.

Cherries had just 32 per cent possession at Vitality Stadium but a combination of superb defending and clinical finishing propelled them to a memorable success.

The game was goal-less at half-time but Joshua King’s double and efforts from David Brooks and substitute Charlie Daniels saw the hosts cruise to their biggest-ever win against the Blues.

Asked about his message to the players at half-time, Howe said: “The message was ‘if we don’t have the ball, don’t worry’, which I don’t think I’ve said many times as manager of Bournemouth.

“Sometimes you have to understand we were never going to dominate possession and you have to be okay without the ball and I felt we were.

“We were a lot better in our mindset in the second half and that helped us to counter-attack in the way we did.

“We scored some great goals on the transitions and showed our quality.

“In terms of the defensive side of the game, I thought we were very good.”

Quizzed on whether the clean sheet or the attacking play had pleased him most, Howe said: “A bit of both.

“The clean sheet was something we had to change. I thought the whole team defended so well.

“The goalkeeper made a brilliant save early in the match, which was pivotal.”