Eddie Howe has dismissed the rumours that emerged earlier in the week that Arsenal are lining him up as a successor to Arsene Wenger.

There were initially murmurs about the possibility of Arsenal fancying Howe whenever Jack was sent to Bournemouth on loan and with the tedium of the interlull these quickly morphed into a full-blown ‘story.’

Dismissed by the chairman of the Cherries, Howe himself was asked about the rumours at his press conference ahead of the return of the Premier League this weekend which sees Bournemouth take on West Brom in what should be Wilshere’s first competitive match for his new team.

 “I’d rather be linked doing something right than the other way, but my only focus is winning with Bournemouth,” Howe told assembled reporters.

“I am loyal. I love the town and I want to continue that association for as long as possible.

BOURNEMOUTH, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 07: Arsene Wenger manager of Arsenal and Eddie Howe manager of Bournemouth shake hands prior to the Barclays Premier League match between A.F.C. Bournemouth and Arsenal at the Vitality Stadium on February 7, 2016 in Bournemouth, England. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)
BOURNEMOUTH, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 07: Arsene Wenger manager of Arsenal and Eddie Howe manager of Bournemouth shake hands prior to the Barclays Premier League match between A.F.C. Bournemouth and Arsenal at the Vitality Stadium on February 7, 2016 in Bournemouth, England. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)

“It’s meaningless [the links with Arsenal]. I don’t want to hear it. I don’t need to hear it. I just want to win games.

“It’s very hard to predict the future. If you try to then you come unstuck. In football management, you live week to week.

“You turn a blind eye to speculation and anyone that tells me about it I believe it is not meaningful and it doesn’t help me get results for this club.”

The smart money should be on Arsene Wenger signing a new deal anyway, rather than Eddie Howe taking a massive leap to the Arsenal after such a short time in the Premier League.

For Howe’s sake I hope it isn’t, but this has all the hallmarks of the Owen Coyle nonsense we had to listen to five years ago.

And look how that turned out for him.