Swansea confirm 'strong interest' in Gylfi Sigurdsson as Everton target next summer signing

Manager Paul Clement has acknowledged that there is currently "strong" interest from other clubs in prominent Everton and Leicester City target Gylfi Sigurdsson, although warns that any sale would be conducted on Swansea City's terms amid reports of a hefty £50m ($64.2m) valuation.

Sigurdsson is very much a player in demand after another fine season in South Wales that saw him play an influential role in the Swans securing a seventh consecutive season of Premier League football. The Iceland playmaker scored 10 goals and provided 13 assists across all competitions as the 2013 League Cup winners eventually finished 15th and seven points clear of danger.

Everton are believed to be pursuing Sigurdsson as their next priority signing having recently made Wayne Rooney the sixth acquisition of a busy summer transfer window to date, while Leicester were said to have stepped up their interest in the 27-year-old after finally confirming Craig Shakespeare as the long-term managerial successor to Claudio Ranieri last month.

A potential return to Tottenham Hotspur has also been been mooted in some quarters.

"He is training hard and straightaway he is at the top of all the statistics physically," Clement told Swansea's official website of Sigurdsson, who returned to pre-season training this week and will be expected to fly with the rest of the squad to Philadelphia on Thursday (13 July) for an 11-day tour of the United States that includes three friendly matches.

"I am planning for him to be here, but there is clearly some very strong interest in him. We will have to see what happens."

It had previously been suggested that Sigurdsson's own lucrative financial demands were threatening to scupper a potential move to Goodison Park, although the BBC reported earlier this week that Swansea had set a £50m asking price after rejecting a bid worth £40m from Leicester.

That is believed to be more than what Everton want to spend on the player, although Clement insists that Swansea would dictate the terms of the sale of a key player who only signed a new four-year contract in August 2016 and has already insisted is not trying to engineer an exit.

"He has three years on his contract and if any business is going to be done, it will be done on the terms we want," the ex-Real Madrid assistant added. "The club recognised his contribution by giving him an extended contract last season. He was happy to stay on here. At the moment he is a Swansea player and we have to carry on looking at it that way."