JAIDON Anthony shared how he was “buzzing” to sign a new deal at Cherries, with the winger now focusing on “fighting week in, week out” to help his side stay in the Premier League.

Cherries announced that the 23-year-old had extended his stay at the Vitality Stadium until the summer of 2027, signing a four-and-half-year new contract.

The rise of Anthony has been near-meteoric, with the winger arriving on the south coast following his release by Arsenal at 16.

When Cherries were last involved in a relegation battle during lockdown in the summer of 2020, Anthony was getting his first taste of senior football on loan at National League South Weymouth.

Two seasons after helping the Terras to promotion from the sixth tier via the play-offs, Anthony was celebrating reaching the Premier League as an established first teamer with Cherries.

Asked if he expected to be a Premier League regular at this stage of his career, Anthony told the Daily Echo: “Probably not so soon.

“I thought I would have had to go do some loans through the leagues, and try and work my way up in that way.

“But I always knew I had some talent, and I knew I wanted to play at the highest level that I could.

“And I'm just grateful for the opportunities that I got, obviously, last year and this year, to be able to be in this position and be a Premier League player, that's fighting week in, week out to try and get some results.”

Discussing negotiations, Anthony shared: “It’s been a long time, but I'm just buzzing it’s finally done.

“It’s felt like ages, but I can just focus, get my head down and get back to work and try and have a successful rest of the season.”

In a bid to strengthen their squad for the survival battle, Cherries added six new signings in the January window. Three of those arrivals play in a similar position to Anthony, with the winger keen to battle for his spot in the team.

He added: “The club just did the best they could to try and keep us in the league.

“Obviously we knew we needed to strengthen. It wasn't really my focus because if I'm being honest, I just focus on how I could help and that will always be the same, really.

“I think everywhere you go, you're going to have to fight to get in the team. It was the same last year. Obviously, we signed a lot of players last year and a lot in my position as well. And it was always a fight to try and play.

“The level goes up and we've got an exciting squad, a lot of talented players in my position and whatever the manager decides, I'm there to try and help wherever I can.

“And obviously every player wants to play and be in the starting eleven, but I understand that it won't be like that throughout my career.

“There'll be some times where I have to bide my time and work to get in the team.”