CHIEF executive Neill Blake admitted he was delighted to fight off competition to bring Ben Pearson to Cherries.

The 26-year-old today penned a three-and-a-half year contract with the Dorset club, signing from fellow Championship outfit Preston North End.

Pearson played for the Lilywhites in a 3-2 victory at Vitality Stadium earlier this season – he had just six months remaining on his contract before joining Jason Tindall’s side.

The former Manchester United youngster was reportedly a target of Scottish giants Celtic.

Blake said: “There were a number of clubs trying to sign Ben, so I am delighted he has chosen Bournemouth for the next stage of his career.

“Over the past four years, Ben has proved himself to be an outstanding midfielder at this level and we believe this club is the right place for him to develop and continue to improve under our manager Jason Tindall and his coaching staff.

“Ben has a range of attributes which will complement those of our existing midfielders and he is an exciting signing who will prove a big asset to our promotion push.”

Oldham-born Pearson, who also had a loan spell at Barnsley, previously represented England at various youth levels up to under-20s.