CHAIRMAN Eddie Mitchell is vowing to press on with his ambitious aim of trying to guide Cherries into the Premier League.

Mitchell has presided over a remarkable transformation in the club's fortunes since taking a controlling interest in June 2009.

Under his stewardship, Cherries have climbed from League Two to the Championship, while he has also overseen a series of impressive ground improvements.

However, despite Cherries' achievements over the past four years, Mitchell says he has no plans to stand still and insists he will pull out all the stops in a bid to take the club to the next level.

“I want the club to reach the Premier League,” said Mitchell, in an exclusive interview with the Daily Echo. “Football is a pressure game and that is what we have got to aim for.

“I know I might fall flat on my face and look stupid for saying it but I want us to compete with the best clubs in the country.

“Three teams have got to go up and I know it is going to be tough. But it is tough for everybody and there are some established clubs in the Championship who haven't made it. I just want us to have a crack at it.”

Mitchell insists Cherries would be financially equipped for the top flight and has revealed contingency planning would take place should the possibility of promotion be on the cards.

He believes the club has learned a great deal from last season's campaign and also from preparations for Cherries' high-profile friendly with European giants Real Madrid on Sunday.

Mitchell added: “If there were signs of it happening, we would get our act together. If we had to knock down the stand we have just put up and put a bigger one in then that is what we would do.

“I have really got to start being sensible about the possibility and have got to start looking, without tempting fate, at the prospect of increasing capacity. If it happened, we would need a bigger capacity and would have to get cracking.

“I have never sat back since I have been at the club and have always planned ahead. So far, everything I have planned has happened so who knows.

“If people have followed what I have done in my lifetime, they will know I have done things quickly. I have never held back, I have always been ambitious and always tried to be honest with people. If there were any signs of us doing what I want, which is to go up, I would be the first one out there with a shovel.”