EDDIE Howe has thanked the club’s owners for allowing him to manage Cherries “without any interference” – and says he hopes he has done “okay” in return.

Howe is on target to lead the club to its highest finishing position since it joined the Football League in 1923, with Cherries currently 11th in the top flight.

They guaranteed a third consecutive season in the Premier League after Saturday’s 2-2 with Stoke at Vitality Stadium had seen them equal last year’s points tally of 42.

It will earn them another huge windfall next season with Howe having played a major role in steering the club from the brink of bankruptcy to a position of financial prosperity.

Howe, who is in his second spell as manager, is also on course to improve the club’s finishing league position for the sixth time in succession since he first took the reins in 2009.

The 39-year-old, who has operated with the second lowest budget in the Premier League, has always enjoyed an excellent working relationship with owner Maxim Demin.

In return, Demin, who sanctioned Howe’s return to the club in October 2012, has seen his manager pilot them from the lower reaches of League One to within touching distance of the top half of the Premier League.

And despite being linked with a host of high-profile jobs – including England and Arsenal – Howe has continued to pledge his allegiance to Cherries while the Russian businessman remains involved.

Demin, who took full control when he bought Eddie and Brenda Mitchell's shares in September 2013, sold a 25 per cent stake in the club to Peak 6 Investments, a Chicago-based private equity firm, in November 2015.

In an exclusive interview with the Daily Echo, Howe said of the owners: “Since I returned to the football club, my dealings and communication with them have been very good.

“I have been made to feel very content that I can lead the club in the way that I see without any interference and I think that is the biggest compliment I can give them – they have trusted me to do the job.

“Hopefully, in return, we have done okay for them and I hope the relationship continues to be as successful as it has.”

Asked how much more improvement he felt was in the club, Howe replied: “I don’t know the answer to that.

“All I can do is try to do it. I believe there is more to come. I felt that last year and I feel it this year.

“The challenge is to recruit players to improve the squad.

“We found that to be very difficult in our first year in the Premier League so we went a different route in the second.

“We set out to buy younger players to try to develop them and let them flourish in the team, however long it takes to bring them through.

“I think that is the wisest way to work. How that impacts on the team in the coming years, it will be exciting to see.”