Howe's That, Eddie?

The highly-rated Bournemouth gaffer, Eddie Howe is now odds-on favourite to get the Burnley job with a number of bookmakers. He has odds of 8-15 with bookmaker Victor Chandler and 1-2 with Skybet to succeed Brian Laws, who was sacked by Burnley yesterday.

What do Clarets fans know about him though?

It is thought he is in the same mould as Owen Coyle wanting to play attractive, attacking footbal which could be a bonus providing he doesn't get above his station.

Howe is six months into a three-year contract with the Cherries.

Bournemouth chairman Eddie Mitchell last night though told the local Dorest Echo that the club had received no approaches for their manager.

Howe also told the local paper that as far as he was concerned it was business as usual.

Asked if the speculation was a distraction or flattering, Howe said:

"It`s neither really. I take it with a pinch of salt until told differently."

During his playing days, Eddie Howe had three spells at Bournemouth. Howe began his professional career for the Cherries in 1994 after signing from local football team Parley Sports. He was a defender and in 1998 played a couple of times for the England Under 21 side.

In March 2002, Portsmouth signed Howe for £400,000, making him new manager Harry Redknapp's first signing. A knee injury though blighted his progress at Fratton Park and he was out for eighteen months before making a return in January 2004.

He was then loaned out to Swindon Town on transfer deadline day in March 2004 but failed to make one single appearance before returning to Fratton Park.

Howe then returned back to Bournemouth initially on loan for the first three months of the 2004-05 season.

It was a successful return and in November 2004 Bournemouth re-signed him permanently on a free transfer.

Just 29, Howe was promoted to the position of player-coach by manager Kevin Bond in December 2006 and was put in charge of the Cherries second-string. He was however still a first-team player and didn't retire until the summer of 2007 when a knee injury put paid to his playing career.

Bond was sacked as Cherries manager in September 2008 and Howe paid the price too.

However he returned as a youth coach under Jimmy Quinn and took over as caretaker manager when Quinn was sacked on the last day of December 2008

He was made the permanent manager of the club in January 2009 and brought the club out of the relegation zone despite a 17 point deficit.

At the start of the 2009-10 season, Howe set up a club record winning eight out of the first nine games.

Clubs were taking note and Peterborough, then in the Championship approached Howe following the sacking of Darren Ferguson but he rejected their offer.

Bournemouth, despite working under a transfer embargo were promoted to League One after two years in the bottom tier. Eddie Howe had made his name and was now well-respected and a target for a number of clubs.

Burnley could do far worse than appointing this up-and-coming manager although maybe a higher-profile name with proven ability at Championship and Premier League level could be a better approach. We shall have to wait and see.

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