Howe expects Wilson to stay at Bournemouth despite Chelsea links

Eddie Howe expects Callum Wilson to stay at Bournemouth in the January transfer window, amid reported interest from Chelsea.

Wilson played the entirety of Bournemouth's EFL Cup quarter-final defeat at Stamford Bridge, with Eden Hazard's late goal proving the difference.

The England international could have capped an impressive performance with a goal midway through the first half, only to drag wide from the edge of the box to let his reported suitors off the hook.

But Howe insisted Wilson, who has scored eight Premier League goals this term, will be staying put next month, despite Chelsea assistant Gianfranco Zola having claimed in the build up to Wednesday's encounter that the striker was on the Blues' radar.

"Not from my perspective, no," Howe told a news conference when asked if Wilson would be allowed to leave Bournemouth. 

"Callum is our player, he is very focused on us and you could see that from his performance.

"He gave everything for the team."

Howe's side relied on Artur Boruc to keep them in the contest at times, but Maurizio Sarri had to call on Chelsea's star man Hazard to settle the tie.

And Howe acknowledged Hazard's quality ultimately proved too much for the Cherries.

"Hazard always has a habit of scoring against us, he's a quality player who made the difference," Howe added.

"He's a nice sub for them to bring on, we knew we were going to be tested but when you go against the best that's the best way to judge yourselves.

"Hazard has got such good feet in tight areas that can swing a game, but we should be pleased with the positives from our display."