Conceding nine goals in three games has left Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe with questions to answer and the 39-year-old has urged his men to put their poor defensive form to bed against Watford.

A 3-3 draw with Arsenal at the Vitality Stadium didn’t exactly set alarm bells ringing at Bournemouth, but after letting three goals slip away to Millwall in the FA Cup, a 1-0 goal lead against Hull became a 3-1 loss at the KCOM Stadium.

And with Bournemouth slipping to 11th in the Premier League and Walter Mazzarri’s Watford up next up at home, Howe has said his men will be out to rectify their errors.

“It doesn’t sound great that statistic and it’s not something we’ll hide from,” he said.

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“It’s a strange one, the lads have produced some heroic defensive performances at times. But the goals have come from nothing, when we’ve been in control.

“None more so than last week when we dominated at Hull and the first time they get really near our box, we concede.

“The only thing you can do is to work harder on all aspects of the team, that’s a very obvious statement but the whole team has to function together.

“We’ve not been good to watch since the Arsenal game and this weekend is a good chance for us to put things right.”

Danny Drinkwater remains determined to get Leicester City back into the top half of the Premier League table, starting with a strong display against Southampton on Sunday.

The England midfielder missed three fixtures for the Foxes in December but has been back in the team throughout January as he returns to full match fitness.

City travel to Southampton, who have not won any of their last four Premier League matches, on Sunday and Drinkwater insists the Foxes must take the game to their opponents.

“I’m getting there and more importantly I’m just trying to help the team get back to where they deserve to be,” he said.

“Game time is important for me and the fitter and stronger I get, the better.

“It’s going to be a tough game because we know the qualities that they’ve got in the team. It’s up to us to stop them by putting our stamp on the game.”

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After losing N’Golo Kante to Chelsea in the summer, Leicester City’s midfield has been boosted by the signing of Wilfred Ndidi, from Genk, and Drinkwater is impressed with the Nigerian international.

“He’s an athletic lad. He’s tall and good on the ball so hopefully when he settles in he can spur us on,” he added.

“The new lads coming in need time to settle in and everyone understands that.

“They’re working hard, but if me and Kingy (Andy King) and the other lads can help them then we’re more than happy to do so.”

Swansea have already brought in three new players in January with the signings of Tom Carroll, Luciano Narsingh and Martin Olsson but boss Paul Clement hasn’t ruled out more arrivals.

Carroll and Olsson could feature this weekend against Liverpool, with Narsingh still recovering from a calf injury.

However as the Swans desperately try to dig themselves out of a relegation scrap, Clement revealed that he could still bring in reinforcements as he aims for rapid improvements.

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He explained: “We are getting to the difficult period (of the window) now. We are not close with anything, but we have targets who we are monitoring on a daily basis.

“There are a lot of things that can affect whether we can do these deals or not.

“It may not be until the last days of the window that anything happens.

“We are one point away from being out of the bottom three and not far from the teams above that.

“That can change very quickly, but I don’t have a points target in mind. I am just looking for short-term improvement.”

Their recent league form may not be something to shout home about but Shane Long believes the perfect tonic can be an extended FA Cup run for Southampton.

The Saints are without a win in the Premier League in eight matches, but are enjoying better fortunes in the cup competitions this season.

They currently lead Liverpool 1-0 after the first leg of their EFL Cup semi-final, while on Tuesday night Long’s stoppage time goal saw them edge past Norwich City 1-0 in the third round of the FA Cup.

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That sets up a clash with Arsenal in the next round and, after seeing some of the fringe players step up against the Canaries, Long is confident they can do the same against the Gunners.

“It would be brilliant,” he said. “There were nine changes tonight and a lot of young faces coming into the team who are working hard in training and deserved their chance and these cup runs give them a chance to show their worth and I felt they did a brilliant job.

“It gives us an opportunity to get a few goals and a run of form, and after our league form it’s nice to get a win and we’ll try to kick on from here.

“We always seem to meet them (Arsenal) in the cup but it’s going to be a great game and hopefully it will be a big turn-out and the fans will get us through that one as it’s always a tough one, Arsenal.

“They’re a good side and I think they might make a few changes as well, which they normally do, and it could be an evenly contested game.

“We’re still in with a shout by keeping ourselves in the competition and we’ll still take every game as it comes.”

Tony Pulis sides may, unfairly or otherwise, be renowned for their dour, defensive displays, but Darren Fletcher claims West Brom use exactly the same tactics as Manchester United did under the exalted Sir Alex Ferguson.

West Brom came under particular fire last term after netting just 34 Premier League goals for the entire season – only hapless, bottom-of-the-table, Aston Villa scored less.

This year, the Baggies are firmly in the middle of the pack when it comes to goals scored but still have a tendency to sit back and get men behind the ball in matches, especially away from home.

Yet skipper Fletcher insists that tactic is simply used for the first quarter of games on the road to frustrate the opposition and get the crowd to turn – much like United did during his 12 years in the first-team at Old Trafford.

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“It’s not the plan to sit out [and defend] for the whole game,” said Fletcher. “It’s to stay tight for the first 15 or 20 minutes.

“That’s the game plan most teams do away from home.

“I’ve been at Manchester United where we were the same – you can’t let the team score in the first 20 minutes.

“It’s not the game plan to do it for the whole game. It’s to try and get them frustrated, open and stretched and take advantage.

“The flip side of it is, if you do concede an early goal it does affect the game plan.”

Shkodran Mustafi has been a mainstay of the Arsenal defence since joining from Valencia in the summer, but explained that injured team-mate Per Mertesacker has played a key role in his development.

Club captain Mertesacker has not featured at all this season due to injury, with Mustafi and Laurent Koscielny combining at the back for the Gunners.

But Mustafi had the chance to play alongside Mertesacker when he first broke into the German national team, with the pair both part of the squad that won the World Cup in 2014.

And although they were only together for one year before Mertesacker’s retirement, the 24-year-old insists he gained a lot from the experience.

(Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)

“Per helped me a lot,” Mustafi said. “When I had just arrived, having a person at the club with so much experience and with the personality he has helped me a lot.

“He helps me on the pitch because when he sees things, he corrected me a few times. He’s not just the type of player who says, ‘You didn’t do that well enough’ or, ‘You have to do it this way’, he tells you why.

“In the short time that I worked with him in the national team, I learned a lot from him.”

Lucas Leiva scored his first goal since 2010 as Liverpool downed Plymouth in Wednesday night’s FA Cup replay and the Brazilian hopes that the floodgates have now opened.

The midfielder’s first-half header, from compatriot Philippe Coutinho’s cross, proved the difference between the two sides at Home Park.

The Reds are still fighting on three fronts this year with an EFL Cup semi-final second leg against Southampton to come, as well as sitting third in the Premier League.

And Leiva is confident that Jurgen Klopp’s side are ready to challenge for silverware come the business end of the season.

“It’s been a long time I don’t score a goal,” he said.

“It was the main thing to help [the team], of course, but I’m delighted because it’s always good to score a goal, especially for me. Hopefully, I get a few more.

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“I think the team is showing a lot of mental strength, we have a lot of young players [and] we are doing well in all the competitions.

“Hopefully we can get to the finals in the two cups and, [in] the Premier League, try to win it because I think we’ve shown that we are capable [of it].

“It’s always hard to say now in January that we are going to win something. We just have to go game by game, enjoy it and do our best.”

Since his transfer was agreed last summer, Manchester City fans have been salivating at the sight of Brazilian starlet Gabriel Jesus in blue and white.

The highly-rated teenager has finalised his moved from his native Palmeiras in a £27 million move, and has joined up with Pep Guardiola’s squad.

The youngster is already being hailed as Brazil’s next big thing, and has four goals in six appearances for his country.

Now, former Real Madrid, Juventus and Brazil midfielder Emerson has backed Jesus, 19, to hit the ground running and get even better under Guardiola’s stewardship.

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“Brazil produces these kind of things, we have this marvellous thing that we can have talented people anywhere, and Gabriel Jesus is one of these talents,” he said.

“He’s young, he’s a kid that still has a lot to learn, but despite being so young he’s already successful. And I wish he does very well because his success is the success of the Brazil squad.

“He’s a great player. Going to Europe is a good thing for a player. He will grow quicker, he will start to understand football in another way and also be respected inside the football scene.

“I guess that for Gabriel Jesus it was a good thing to leave Brazilian soccer, he did everything he could in [Brazil]. He’s going to a very difficult, competitive [type of football] but I think that he can be successful.”

Jordan Pickford’s emergence in the last 12 months appeared to come out of the blue, but ex-Sunderland star Rory Delap is adamant the goalkeeper has always possessed the talent to make it in the Premier League.

Pickford has burst onto the scene at the Stadium of Light, displacing Vito Mannone and making the number one shirt his own.

Sunderland have struggled this season but Pickford has been a revelation, and, with his contract up at the end of the season, a number of top clubs are rumoured to be fighting for his signature.

And Delap, who played at Sunderland in 2006-07, believes the 22-year-old has the quality to make it at the top after playing alongside him at Burton Albion in 2013.

“You could see from the day he came in that he had quality,” explained Delap. “It didn’t take an expert to see his potential.

“Sometimes you see that in young lads but they fall by the wayside, while some go on to have exceptional careers, and I’m pretty early on we saw Jordan’s commitment and attitude to football.”

“He’s had a great 12 months, getting into Sunderland’s first-team and the England set-up, and hopefully he’ll go on to have a very good career.”

Sam Allardyce has backed Crystal Palace youngster Sullay Kaikai to make an impact at Selhurst Park, after the young winger made his long-awaited first start for the Eagles.

Since 2013, Kaikai has earned first-team experience in the lower leagues during loan spells with Shrewsbury Town, Crawley Town and Crawley Town.

This season’s loan move to Championship side Brentford was cut short in January as Palace recalled the 21-year-old forward.

Kaikai started his first game for Palace in the 2-1 home victory over Bolton Wanderers in the FA Cup third round replay on Tuesday.

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And manager Allardyce believes Kaikai’s confidence in his own ability will carry him in good stead as he looks to establish himself in the Eagles’ first-team.

“He wasn’t overawed,” said Allardyce. “He even took a free kick from 45 yards out and tried to bend it in – that’s youngsters for you.

“It shows belief in his own ability and actually, the other free kick he hit was very close.

“So I think he has got a lot about him and he has got good movement and touch, and with time, if he is a good learner, he could have an impact in his career here at Crystal Palace.”