Swansea City are sticking to their £50m guns over Gylfi Sigurdsson – and have fired a 'tapping-up' warning shot to Everton over their pursuit of their star man.

In a statement from the Swans' American owners Steve Kaplan and Jason Levien, the Toffees have been told in no uncertain terms that they can forget about signing Sigurdsson until they come up with the record-breaking price placed on his head earlier this week.

And the Merseyside club have also been issued a reminder over any attempts to try and reach an agreement with Swansea's player of the year before a fee is accepted.

The Swans remain angered about the public chase over Sigurdsson and its unsettling effect, a situation that saw the Iceland ace shock teammates and management when he refused to travel to the States for the club's pre-season tour just hours before the flight was due to leave.

Swansea have opened the door for Sigurdsson to “reconsider his decision” and join the rest of Paul Clement's squad on the east coast where they prepare to take on Philadelphia Union this weeked.

But, as it stands, Sigurdsson is still in the UK having made it clear he would be interested in making the move to Goodison – but could be left in limbo until Everton match Swansea's valuation after they were knocked back with a £40m package offer earlier this week.

And now Kaplan and Levien have issued a firm warning over any attempts to force Swansea into a sale below their set price, admitting their disappointment Sigurdsson opted to pull out of the tour but outlining their optimism they could yet hold onto the Euro 2016 hero.

Sigurdsson featured in Swansea's midweek friendly at Barnet with club officials – including Paul Clement – all preparing for the midfielder to travel as planned with the rest of the squad, despite the ongoing interest and speculation.

But he is thought to have told Clement and other officials the following morning he did not feel in the right frame of mind to leave the UK given the apparent uncertainty over his future.

It has left many thinking a deal is set to be struck with Everton, but in a statement Kaplan and Levien have said: “We are disappointed Gylfi has taken the decision not to join his teammates in America where they are working with the coaching staff to prepare for the upcoming season.



“At this time we have not received an offer from any club which represents a fair valuation of Gylfi given his importance to our club.



“As we have stated, we will not be bullied or forced into a decision until a club meets our valuation of the player, no matter whether they believe they have an agreement with the player. Any such agreement would obviously be in contravention of Premier League legislation.



“We have the ultimate respect for Gylfi as a person and a player and we are optimistic that he will reconsider his decision and join his teammates.”

Leicester have also made moves to sign Sigurdsson but also saw their offers rejected, with the player not thought to be interested in moving to the former champions. Tottenham had been previously weighing up a move for their former player but are not believed to be still in the hunt for his services.

Swansea will wait for Everton's next move, with Clement insisting in midweek that he wanted the situation sorted sooner rather than later – but only on the club's terms.

Swansea will feel their stance has been justified by the £50m package agreed to take full-back Kyle Walker from Tottenham to Manchester City, a player with less influence on a game than Sigurdsson, who was one of the Premier League's leading assist-makers last season