Millwall manager Gary Rowett said isn't bothered about the speculation linking defender Jake Cooper with a number of Premier League club.

The 25-year-old has been the subject of interest from topflight strugglers Aston Villa and Southampton in recent weeks - following on from a bid from Scottish Premiership side Rangers at the beginning of last season.

Cooper has been one of the Lions' most consistent defenders since joining permanently from Reading in the summer of 2017 and has played every minute of Millwall's last 113 Championship matches.

However, Rowett admitted that he isn't going to panic and the talk is just a sign of how well Cooper has been playing this season.

The Lions chief told the South London Press: "A lot of players are going to be linked to other clubs because they are performing really, really well and you’re sat in the top 10 of a very competitive league in the Championship.

"But at the same time there is certainly no panic for the club that he’s going elsewhere. He is a player we want to be here for a long time and develop with us – hopefully he can see the progression.

"I don’t read too much into the situation. If you think about January there were so many stories about Jed [Wallace] but he is still our player and performing well.

"You take it as part and parcel of the game, so I don’t read an awful lot into it until someone at the club  says: ‘We’ve had a £10million bid for Jake Cooper’. Until then I don’t give it a second thought.

"It’s more how can we keep Coops improving and getting better – because his performances have improved since the season has gone on."

The Verdict

Rowett is clearly not going to let the links impact Cooper's performances on the pitch, but the Premier League clubs aren't going anywhere.

His age, physical condition, lack of injuries and consistency over the previous seasons are obviously going to make him a target and the Lions boss can expect more interest when the transfer window reopens.

But Cooper only recently in December 2018 signed a new long-term contract, meaning that if the time comes, Millwall aren't going to undervalue the 6ft6 defender.