CHERRIES midfielder Philip Billing hailed his team’s FA Cup defeat as “not the end of the world” since it allowed them to focus entirely on the league.

Leicester City won a tight game 1-0 on Tuesday night at Vitality Stadium, thanks to Abdul Fatawu’s curling strike in extra time.

Billing, making his first appearance since serving a three-match suspension for a red card against Nottingham Forest, played the entire 120 minutes.

After the game, he told BBC Radio Solent: “I was disappointed to lose, but I think it was a good test.”

“Leicester are a top team with some talented players.” A Premier League squad in the Championship, basically.

“But I believe we had a lot of opportunities and should have scored – or at least hit the target, which we did not.

“To be honest, we’re so close to the quarterfinals, but we need to stay focused on the league.

“For me, the FA Cup is nice, but the team should concentrate on the league.

“Definitely a squandered chance, and obviously you want to win.

“But it means less games, so we can concentrate on the league.

“Always disappointed to lose, but it’s not the end of the world.”

When asked if the side looked fragmented owing to modifications, Billing answered, “I believe so. The press was not as tight as we wanted it to be.

“As soon as anyone got fatigued, including myself, I couldn’t run well in extra time.

“I can only imagine some of the boys that played against City, not too many days ago into a game like this, everybody was tired.”

Cherries were profligate once more, reaching the target with just four.

“This season, I have two. I should be scoring more as well, but I’m not always selfish; I watch out for my teammates when I should be shooting more.