Bournemouth's Callum Wilson delighted to return after six months out

Bournemouth striker Callum Wilson spoke of his delight at making his first appearance after six months out with a serious knee injury.

The 24-year-old, who ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee in September last year, came on as a 90th-minute substitute as the Cherries won 2-1 at Aston Villa on Saturday.

Wilson wore a wide smile as he replaced Josh King and the former England U21 has vowed to push his fellow forward for a place in Bournemouth's five remaining games.

"Every player, when you get injured, wants to return and I'M delighted to get out on the pitch," Wilson said.

"I'm delighted we got a result too and we played well. The team has been fantastic this season and getting good results, so to be over 40 points is fantastic.

"I've been working hard throughout rehab so today is a step in the right direction. I'll be pushing the strikers and hopefully I can get more time on the pitch.

"We've got a few hard games coming up but it's to play these teams that I've been pushing hard through my rehab."

Manager Eddie Howe said Wilson's name on the team sheet gave everybody a "huge lift", as Steve Cook and King grabbed the goals at Villa Park.

Howe said: "He's such a big player for us, and was last year in our promotion campaign. At the start of this season he looked really good so to get him back is great. 

"We're not going to push him back too early. Hopefully he's back for good and we look forward to working with him next season."