BOSS Eddie Howe conceded Cherries were in a “difficult position” in fighting for Premier League survival but added: “One result changes everything.”

The Dorset club make the trip to Wolverhampton Wanderers tomorrow (6pm), looking to earn three crucial points in their battle to beat the drop.

A 2-0 defeat to Crystal Palace on Saturday proved a tough pill to swallow for Howe’s troops, as they missed the chance to leap out of the drop zone with eight games remaining.

But the Cherries boss called for his side to be “strong” in the midst of their relegation scrap.

Speaking ahead of the trip to Molineux, the 42-year-old said: “We are in a very difficult position, we’re fighting to try to stay in the league.

“But one win, one result changes everything.

“It changes perceptions, changes our position, changes the whole outlook from everybody connected with this football club.

“We have to be very strong, very resolute and rise to the challenge that is in front of us.

“We are still in a relegation battle – nothing’s changed, nothing’s been decided and things are still so, so tight.”

Cherries’ work-rate was mentioned by pundits following their lacklustre loss to the Eagles, but the manager did not believe his squad’s endeavour was an issue.

“Work-rate’s an easy thing to label at players on the back of a defeat,” he added.

“If I look at us historically through the season, we have been one of the hardest-working teams.

“Our fitness stats are up there again in the top three teams of the division in most markers. I don’t think that is an issue.

“I think pressure, possibly, can have a detrimental effect to performance.

“I would put it more along those lines – not dealing with the first goal and dealing with the setback of that with a lot of hype, expectation and feeling that this game was so important to us.

“I just think at that moment we didn’t respond very well. Sometimes it can look like something that it’s not.

“My players knew the importance of the game. They are very good professionals. They wanted to win – it just didn’t quite show in the way that it needed to.”