CHERRIES’ new recruit Andrew Surman has set his sights high after returning to Dean Court for a second loan spell.
The Norwich City midfielder today became Eddie Howe’s fourth summer addition when he agreed terms on a season-long deal.
Surman made 26 appearances for Cherries at the start of 2005-06 after signing temporarily from neighbours Southampton.
The 26-year-old, who joined Wolves for £1.2million in 2009, helped Norwich win promotion from the Championship during his first season at Carrow Road in 2011.
However, despite featuring prominently for the Canaries in the Premier League in 2011-12, Surman was restricted by injury to just seven appearances last season.
Asked whether he felt Cherries could match Norwich’s achievement of back-to-back promotions from League One to the top flight, Surman told the Daily Echo: “Anything can happen.
“When I first joined Norwich, people were saying they had done well to get out of League One and were asking whether we would settle for finishing just above the relegation zone. It shows what can happen.
“There are some good teams in the league but the best teams don’t always necessarily win the league or get promoted. If you can gain a bit of momentum, you never know where it might take you. You have to go into it positively and aim for the top.
“I have had my ups and downs in the Championship. I was relegated with Southampton and reached the play-offs with them. It was a great achievement getting promoted with Norwich.
“The tempo is higher and there is a lot more football played. No disrespect to League One but you come up against better players.
“When we won the title with Norwich, we had a great team spirit and a winning mentality. Those are the key things with regards to doing well in the Championship. If you can put together a run of wins, you can shoot up the table and put yourself in contention for the play-offs or the top two. You just don’t know.
“There is a good group of lads here and the spirit seems good so you are halfway there. If you can take that on to the pitch and put together a run of wins, that breeds confidence. That is what you need in the Championship even if you are not playing well.”
Signed by Sean O’Driscoll during his first loan spell with Cherries, Surman netted six goals and played alongside current boss Howe.
“I was only 18 and first-team football was quite new to me,” said Surman. “We had a good manager in Sean O’Driscoll and some decent players but the financial side wasn’t great. That seems to have changed now and everyone is talking about them having a go this season. It can only be positive.
“I played with the manager when I was here on loan and he has gone on to bigger and better things. It will be a different relationship this time because I am a player and he is the manager. You have got to have that respect for the manager and I have huge respect for him. I am looking forward to working with him.
“He has outlined the way he likes the team to play and where I might fit in. Once I start to work with him and the rest of the players over the next few days, I will get to grips with it. I am going to have to learn pretty quickly with a game on Saturday, if selected. He laid down how he likes to play and what is expected of every player.”
Surman, who injured his left knee last season, added: “I was out for quite a while last season with injury and, coming into this season, new players came in at Norwich and the squad was quite big so I knew I was probably going to be moving on or possibly getting a loan move.
“I didn’t know where but this cropped up at the weekend. I spoke to my agent and heard Eddie Howe had phoned the club and made an enquiry and it just went from there. Once the terms had been thrashed out, it was all sorted today.
“The main thing for me is the possibility of playing games. I need to play games wherever I am but there is an extra advantage with Bournemouth because I have been here before and I know the area quite well.
“I am looking forward to it. Bournemouth are on a good run. They have had a good couple of years and things seem to be changing for the better with new ownership coming in and a bit of money ploughed into the club. It is looking bright.”
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