Bournemouth wing trio could miss Tottenham visit as Eddie Howe ponders Jermain Defoe selection

Bournemouth could be without a trio of wingers for this weekend's Premier League clash with Tottenham Hotspur, manager Eddie Howe has confirmed.

The Cherries, currently 12th and six points above the relegation zone with nine matches remaining in 2017-18, welcome Spurs to the Vitality Stadium on Sunday [11 March] looking to collect their first win in four matches having produced two successive - but very different - draws an emphatic defeat to Huddersfield Town last month, following wins over Chelsea and Stoke City .

Howe's side netted twice in the final 10 minutes to claim an unlikely home point against Newcastle United a fortnight ago, while last week they led for more than an hour away to Leicester City before conceding a superb Riyad Mahrez equaliser in the seventh minute of second-half stoppage-time.

Tottenham, though still yet to be defeated in domestic competition in 2018, may be feeling slightly vulnerable after their 17-match unbeaten run across all competitions came to an end in midweek with two goals in three second-half minutes that swung the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie against Juventus decisively in the experienced Bianconeri's favour.

Defender Tyrone Mings will remain absent for Bournemouth against Spurs and likely for the rest of the season, with the former Ipswich Town defender - who previously missed 12 months of action after tearing anterior and medial ligaments in his knee just six minutes into his debut against Leicester in August 2015 - having recently travelled to Qatar for specialist treatment on a long-term back injury.

Marc Pugh missed that most recent meeting with the Foxes due to a calf issue and Howe does not expect him to be ready to face Tottenham either. Fellow widemen Jordon Ibe [hamstring] and Ryan Fraser [back] also played no part at Leicester and are considered as doubtful for the weekend pending late fitness tests.

"We have a couple of concerns," Howe told reporters at his pre-match press conference on Friday, per Bournemouth's official website. "I think Marc Pugh will miss the game, but we also have problems with Jordon Ibe and Ryan Fraser.

"We'll check them close to the game, maybe we'll have a better idea on if they'll make it the day before the game. They are doubts before the game."

Like Fraser, Jermain Defoe, 35, was left as an unused substitute in the East Midlands after returning from a two-month layoff that followed a right ankle fracture sustained just before Christmas in the Carabao Cup quarter-final defeat to Chelsea.

However, it appears that the veteran ex-Tottenham striker could be in contention for a larger role against the club for whom he netted 143 goals in 363 appearances across three separate spells to nestle behind Jimmy Greaves, Bobby Smith, Martin Chivers and Cliff Jones as their fifth leading scorer of all-time.

"Jermain has looked good since he's returned from his ankle injury, he made a difference in the Newcastle game and he's certainly in my mind for selection," Howe added.