Fleetwood Town boss Joey Barton has revealed that the club will only sell their players if the right offer comes in following reports of interest from Championship side Middlesbrough for Wes Burns.

According to Football Insider, the Smoggies are set to make an offer for the 24-year-old as Jonathan Woodgate looks to bolster his wide options before the transfer window closes tomorrow.

Burns, who is also thought to be the subject of interest from a number of other second-tier sides, excelled for Fleetwood last season as his seven goals and two assists contributed to the club finishing eleventh in the League One standings in May.

Speaking to the Fleetwood Weekly News about the prospect of losing some of the club's key individuals, Barton said: “We have already had interest for players.

"We are sensible about it. We want players to come to Fleetwood and help us to get promoted.

"Off the back of that, bigger clubs with bigger budgets will want to come and steal your best players.

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"We need to make sure they do not get stolen from us and move on with a fair assessment and a fair price for everyone.

"As it stands, I think the club has to sell players. That is something that we have to do.

"Unfortunately in the past players have gone out of the building on frees. It has not been ideal."

The Verdict

Having kept together the nucleus of the squad which performed so well in League One during the previous campaign, it is understandable that Barton is reluctant to let any of his players leave for lower than what he values them at.

Yet by admitting that Fleetwood have to sell players, the 36-year-old may have, albeit inadvertently, encouraged Middlesbrough to step up their pursuit of Burns who would undoubtedly be a huge miss if he does end up leaving Highbury Stadium.

Although the League One side will have several weeks to find a replacement for the winger, if they are serious about pushing on towards a top-six finish, they may have to resist the temptation to cash in on him.