EXCLUSIVE: Sunderland reject Premier League offer for key player

Sunderland have rejected an offer from a Premier League club for one of their key players.

Sunderland are bracing themselves for a battle to hold onto their top talent this summer, and have already rejected a bid for Jack Clarke.

Clarke is one of a number of impressive young players who are attracting serious interest following a superb season in the Championship.

The winger produced more than 20 goal contributions, and that has not gone unnoticed, with an unnamed Premier League club already making an offer in the region of £9million.

Sunderland have a model of developing players before selling at a large profit, before reinvesting that money into what they hope will be a sustainable conveyor belt of talent.

Whether they see this summer as the optimum time to start selling remains to be seen though, and, as exclusively revealed by Sunderland Nation earlier this months, contract talks to extend Clarke’s deal on Wearside are already happening.

There is no urgency to sell either, with Clarke still having three years remaining on his current contract.

Crystal Palace are admirers of Clarke and see him as a potential replacement for Wilfried Zaha, while Brentford also retain a strong interest.

Either way, it will take considerably more than £9million to tempt Sunderland to sell, although interest is expected to persist throughout the summer.

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