Ryan Lowe has reacted to reported interest in Plymouth Argyle striker Luke Jephcott, labelling it as a 'load of bull'.
Jephcott, 21, has been in scintillating form for the League One side this season, scoring 18 goals as the Devon side look to push for a play-off spot this season.
His electric form has supposedly garnered interest from the likes of Derby County, Stoke City and Sheffield Wednesday, but these claims have been firmly squashed by Argyle boss Lowe.
Speaking to Plymouth Live, Lowe said: “I will tell you straight now, there has been no head of recruitment from Stoke at our games – fact - because they can’t get in unless we let them in.
“You can only go and watch the next three games who you are playing, so they haven’t been at our ground.
“And then I have got a relationship with someone at Stoke who is a member of the first team staff. I would like to think he would ring me, he never rang me.
“I would like to think Wayne Rooney would speak to Neil Dewsnip if he was interested in Luke Jephcott. He hasn’t rang him.
“And I would like to think a member of staff from Sheffield Wednesday, and I know Thommo (Neil Thompson), who is the caretaker manager now, would ring me if they were interested.
“So to answer your question, it’s a load of bull, whoever it is coming from.”
The Welsh under-21 international has enjoyed a breakthrough campaign at Home Park this term, but showed flashes of his quality last season in League Two.
Jephcott scored seven goals in 14 appearances in League Two last season for Argyle, and he's continued that momentum this season in fine fashion.
As it stands, the Argyle forward is the third top scorer in League One, with Sunderland's Charlie Wyke and Peterborough's Jonson Clarke-Harris having scored one more goal than the Welshman thus far (17).
The verdict
It was no real surprise to see links with Championship clubs surface for Jephcott, as he's been in excellent form this season.
The striker has a real knack of being in the right place at the right time and is such an integral cog in Ryan Lowe's side at the moment, so you can't blame Lowe for squashing claims of interest.
Argyle still have a chance of sneaking into the play-offs in League One, so he'll be eager to fend off any external talk of interest in their star-man to ensure he is fully focused on the job at hand.