Nathan Ake is unsure whether he will return to Chelsea once his loan spell at Bournemouth ends.

The left-back is currently spending the 2016/17 campaign on loan with Eddie Howe's side, where he has cemented his place in the starting XI, playing every single minute of Bournemouth's last eight Premier League games.

The 21-year-old recently scored the 93rd-minute winner in Bournemouth's remarkable 4-3 comeback victory over Liverpool in early December and scored another winner against Stoke while netting Bournemouth's only goal against Southampton, although they went on to lose the game 3-1.

His form has been such that reports have suggested the Cherries could try and seal a permanent move for Ake in the summer, but the defender has admitted he doesn't yet know where he will be playing next season.

"It is still a long way away," Ake said of whether he will stay at Bournemouth.

"Of course that is the plan to go back to Chelsea but it's still too early to say."

Speaking earlier this week to Sky Sports, he added: "Everything is local [at Bournemouth]. If you go into town, people, old and young, come up to you and say, 'Well done'.

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"Everyone seems to be involved at the club, like a family. Everyone is really nice, and everyone does things with each other, and it makes the group really tight.

"I am happy here. The loan deal is until the end of the season. I don't look too far ahead. At the end of the season, we will see.

"It is too early to say [if he can make it at Chelsea]. There are still things to improve. Hopefully at the end of the season we will know more."