Bournemouth coach to extend Christian Atsu holidays in Ghana after AFCON qualifiers participation

Bournemouth coach Eddie Howe will give "careful consideration" to allowing his Ghana star Christian Atsu to extend his holidays in his home country thanks to his participation in Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers for the Black Stars.

Atsu, who recently joined the newly-promoted English Premier League side on loan from rivals Chelsea, has had no time to rest as he joined the Black Stars immediately he arrived in Accra on holidays.

With the club asking the players to report back for the start of pre-season training a week on Saturday it means Atsu would have has just 14 days of break.

Howe wants to give his army of internationals extra time to recharge their batteries but says each player will be judged individually.

No fewer than seven members of Howe's squad have been on duty with their respective countries since the end of last season with some only officially stood down this weekend.

And with Cherries due to report back for the start of pre-season training a week on Saturday, it will leave them with little scope for holidays and only a few days of recovery time.

Loan recruit Christian Atsu has been away with Ghana playing in Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers and scored in a 7-1 win over Mauritius.

Howe says he will speak to the players on an individual basis and assess their respective fitness requirements before deciding whether they should be given any extra time to recover.

In an exclusive interview with the Daily Echo, Howe said: "We were delighted to see Matt Ritchie score his first international goal for Scotland and proud for Harry Arter to make his debut for the Republic of Ireland.

"On the flip side, Harry withdrawing from the Republic squad due to injury was naturally a worry but we are hoping it is nothing serious.

"Baily representing England and Shaun being involved with Wales was also a feather in the cap for them and Artur, Joshua and Christian have also played a big part for their respective countries.

"Being a footballer is a 365-day-a-year job and they don't get much of a break. Guys who play World Cups and European Championships are even more adapted to that.

"I will speak to the players to see how they feel. Most of them had a good rest last summer and they all had a short break at the end of last season.

"We need to make sure they are fresh but we don't want them to miss any football and I'm sure they will be the same. It will be very much a case of assessing them individually and seeing how they feel."