Source: Bournemouth_Echo
Cherries chairman MItchell tells Howe: Keep your hands off our players
EDDIE Mitchell is vowing to pull up the drawbridge as the vultures start to circle in the wake of Eddie Howe's departure to Burnley.[LNB] Mitchell insists the Cherries squad will remain intact at least until the end of the season as the club continues its League One promotion push.[LNB] His comments come just days after Championship strugglers Scunthorpe tabled bids for highly-rated Cherries stars Jason Pearce and Marvin Bartley.[LNB] The Iron unsuccessfully tried to test Mitchell's resolve by offering £100,000 for Cherries skipper Pearce and £50,000 for midfield enforcer Bartley.[LNB] Daily Echo sources suggest Bartley is also likely to be a target for Crystal Palace before the transfer window closes at the end of this month.[LNB] And an unnamed Championship club is believed to be on the trail of goalkeeper Shwan Jalal, while Brentford could be ready to come in for winger Liam Feeney.[LNB] Supporters are also concerned that Howe could try to entice some of the club's prize assets to Burnley, with Lancastrian Marc Pugh possibly top of his wish list.[LNB] Chairman Mitchell, however, says he will be taking a tough stance and has already given caretaker boss Lee Bradbury assurances about the squad.[LNB] Speaking to the Daily Echo, Mitchell said: I'm not going to accept any bids for the players. I want this club to succeed and, to me, succeeding is staying in this division and I'm not going to risk that for anything. That has got to be our main objective and anything over and above it would be a bonus. I would love to give the supporters a bonus but we have got to work hard to try to get it.[LNB] We don't need the cash at the moment and want to build on what we have got. That must show the strength of the cash flow at the club to a degree. Nobody else is leaving before the end of the season. End of story.[LNB] We have got a winning team and a fantastic team and I am not going to start stripping that because I want us to carry on Eddie's good work. As far as I am concerned, these boys are staying until the end of the season and I will do my utmost to keep them beyond that.[LNB] Asked whether a clause had been included in the Howe deal preventing the former Dean Court boss from signing any Cherries players, Mitchell replied: Unless he is going to pay miles over the odds, he isn't having any of our players because we aren't going to let any go.[LNB] When pressed by the Daily Echo, Howe, who yesterday finalised his move to Turf Moor, politely declined to be drawn on the subject.[LNB] Mitchell, meanwhile, described Scunthorpe's bids for Pearce and Bartley as derisory.[LNB]
