Winning mentality clear - Howe

While the Cherries had to settle for a 1-1 draw against their La Liga opponents at La Manga Club Football Centre, it was a competitive, full-bloodied fixture that saw eight players booked.

However, that did not concern the manager, who saw his side desperate to triumph on their first outing of the summer.

“It got quite tense at the end with a lot of tackles but I think the will to win is really good within the squad, so I was really pleased to see that element of it come out,” Howe told afcbTV.

“We’ve developed the group in such a way where everything we do in training is geared to winning and, for me, that is such an important thing – you cannot switch it on and off.

“So when you come into a game, although there were no points at stake, there is still pride at stake and everyone vying for positions to get into the team.

“We are trying to create a winning mentality and that was evident. The way we came back from a difficult position was impressive, and the second half display was everything I want to see from this team.”

Jordon Ibe’s solo effort cancelled out a Wissam Ben Yedder goal to secure a share of the spoils for AFC Bournemouth.

And Howe was delighted to go toe-to-toe with an experienced opponent who reached the quarter-finals of last season’s Champions League.

“It was a really good test,” he continued.

“We wanted a tougher pre-season this year and that game was evidence of what we were after.

“It was a tough game, a quick game and I’m really pleased with the players, especially in the second half, as I thought we gave a good account of ourselves.”