EDDIE Howe admits it was "difficult" for Asmir Begovic to stake a claim at Cherries due to the form of the club's other goalkeepers, adding how he had been allowed to join AC Milan on loan "with our best wishes".

Both Aaron Ramsdale and Mark Travers have impressed during their outings for Cherries this campaign, while Artur Boruc also earned praise for his displays towards the end of last season, with all three featuring for Howe's side more recently than Begovic.

The Bosnian last played competitively for Cherries in a Premier League defeat against Burnley in April.

He spent the first half of this season at Qarabag in Azerbaijan, briefly returning to train in Dorset before sealing a temporary switch until June with the Italian giants earlier this month.

Begovic is yet to make his Milan debut, named as an unused substitute for their past three fixtures.

Discussing the decision to let the 32-year-old leave for a second time this season, Howe told the Daily Echo: "When you’ve got such an experienced goalkeeper, who is very keen to play and you can’t offer him that opportunity with the form of Aaron, of Mark, of Artur, it’s been difficult for him.

"So we’ve let him go and he goes with our best wishes."