Eddie Howe was in a reflective mood after his side's meltdown against Tottenham Hotspur as they were beaten by a 4-0 margin that will certainly have hurt the team's confidence.
Spurs looked in control throughout and the goals came from Mousa Dembele, Heung Min-Son in the first half, Harry Kane and Vincent Janssen finished the job in the second half to make it a miserable day at work for the Cherries.
However, Howe has admitted that the side is now looking to make quick improvements and to bounce back from this loss as soon as possible.
Players couldn't cope with Spurs' style, says Howe
Howe spoke to AFC Bournemouth's official website afcb.co.uk after the game and spoke about how "tough" the game was for his players and gave his views on the opposition's performance.
He said that he thought Mauricio Pocchettino's players were "very good" and admitted that his own charges were not "so good", also saying that, that's "not a good mix" when coming up against a team like Spurs, especially at home.
Howe spoke highly of Spurs' style of play and said that they were "free-flowing, free-scoring" and believed that his side were unable to "cope" with the opposition's play very well.
Howe highlights need to focus
The Cherries were unable to contain the fluid Spurs attack like Howe had planned to do during the game and the former Burnley manager underlined the importance for the players to understand what they had done wrong and learn from the game.
Howe said, "You need to focus on yourself" and although he said that he could give Spurs credit for their performance, he also believes that his side could have done better in "certain situations", highlighting the number of goals that the side had conceded in the game.
He continued in saying that, " a whole host of things" could have gone better for his side and said that "as a group", the mentality of the players was not "good enough".
Lewis Cook's return a positive for Cherries
One of the few positives that Howe would have taken from the game was the cameo of Lewis Cook off the bench as he came off to replace the injured Jack Wilshere in the second half, to make his first appearance in the first team since the opening day of the season.
Howe gave praise where it was deserved and said, "Lewis did well when he came on, he’s had to be very patient".
He underlined the hard-work put in by the Englishman in training and said that he showed a " great attitude behind the scenes" and and said that Cook is "willing to learn" and wants to keep improving.
Next for the Cherries is a visit from Middlesbrough at the Vitality Stadium, a side that has struggled to score goals this season. Going into the business end of the season, Howe admitted that he knew his side will be controlling their Premier League destiny from here on.
He said,"We have five games left and we know every game is so important for us" and lastly added that the team has to train for the game with the "confidence" that their destiny is "in their own hands"