Swansea City have rejected a £15m bid from Sheffield United for Oli McBurnie, WalesOnline understands.
The Blades are huge admirers of the Scot, and following their promotion to the Premier League, Chris Wilder made the 23-year-old their No. 1 transfer target.
United have already paid a club-record fee to take forward Callum Robinson from Preston to Bramall Lane this summer.
And they have lodged a bumper bid to sign McBurnie, although the Swans have turned down that opening offer from Sheffield United.
The Blades are eager to further bolster their forward options, with Brentford's Neal Maupay also on their transfer wishlist.
McBurnie netted 24 goals in all competitions under Graham Potter last term and was always set to be on the radar of other clubs as a result of his efforts in the 2018/19 campaign.
But following Daniel James' big money move to Manchester United along with the expected departures of big earners including Jordan Ayew, Andre Ayew, Jefferson Montero and Borja Baston, the Swans are now in a far stronger position financially.
The Scotland international remains an integral part of Steve Cooper's plans, and the Swans are loathe to see last season's top scorer depart.
They will do everything in their power to retain the services of McBurnie, who signed a new long-term deal with the club last summer. However, if a mammoth offer comes in for the striker, the top brass at the Liberty Stadium will have to consider selling their prized asset.
McBurnie was among the scorers in Swansea's 3-2 friendly win over Crawley Town at The People's Pension Stadium on Saturday.
"Oli was good today, and it was good to see him score, and Nathan (Dyer). Those players who play high up the pitch are there to get into goal scoring positions and take their chances.
"Oli got great numbers last year and he's very committed to at least reaching that again, and improving on it. We've got to make sure we work hard with him and the rest of the team to make those chances for him.
"I've spoken to all of the players. I really believe in building relationships with the players. Oli loves playing for the club, you can see that. He has a lot of friends, and I go back to the spirit, and he's a big part of that. He's a big character, a very likeable lad and he works very hard in training.
"He's producing aswell so I'm sure come August 3, he'll be ready to deliver as he did last year.
"We're close to halfway through pre-season so we feel like we're on course to get to where we want to be, while knowing that we've still got a long way to go in these final three weeks to be season ready."
