BOSS Eddie Howe was boosted to have dressing room leader Dan Gosling back among his troops and insisted: “If he speaks and says something, then the other lads will follow.”

The all-action midfielder, snapped up on a free transfer from Newcastle in 2014 when the Dorset club was in the Championship, has been plagued by injury and not featured for Cherries’ first team since April.

He picked up a calf problem after scoring in a 3-3 draw at Southampton, a problem which curtailed the end of his 2018-19 campaign.

Brixham-born Gosling then suffered a hip muscle injury which required surgery in July, having played 45 minutes of a friendly against AFC Wimbledon in pre-season.

But having returned to training and been an unused substitute against Newcastle in the Premier League before the international break, the 29-year-old is getting back up to full speed.

Gosling, who captained Cherries against Wolves, Leicester and Burnley last season, played 90 minutes for Shaun Cooper’s under-21s this week during a 1-0 friendly victory over Reading.

Quizzed on the former Plymouth youngster’s return, Howe told the Daily Echo: “It’s great to have him back in the ranks.

“Dan is very much a leader based on how he conducts himself and his positivity.

“He is so well-liked in the dressing room. If he speaks and says something, then the other lads will follow.

“You can’t have enough leaders in your team. I actually think we are developing nicely in that side of the game.

“We had a few people who had the captaincy, which would have been a great experience for Dan last season.

“That experience of leadership can only help develop those sides of your personality.”

With 17 goals and seven assists to his name since arriving at the Dorset club, Gosling’s next appearance will be his 150th for Cherries in all competitions.

Reflecting on his time working with the ex-England under-21 international, Howe added: “Dan has turned out to be a fantastic signing for us.

“We were really excited about signing him from Newcastle – it turned out to be a free transfer.

“He had really good experiences coming to us with Everton and had that little taste of Premier League football that we felt, at the time, we needed to add into the group.

“He had to be very patient in that first year. I’ll always remember how good he was when he wasn’t playing regularly - how he handled and conducted himself.

“He got his rewards in the second season when he became pretty much a regular in the team. He has never looked back since that moment.

“I have a lot of time for Dan, he’s a great player and a great person.”

Gosling’s return also adds another contender for Cherries’ central midfield places, with the likes of Philip Billing, Jefferson Lerma and Lewis Cook all currently vying for starting spots.

“We have got a real strong competition in there,” the boss said.

“When you reel off the list of names of the players that can play in there, the competition is hot.”