Watford have seen an opening offer of around £2.5 million for Hibernian defender Josh Doig knocked back by the Scottish Premier League side amid Sunderland and Stoke City interest, according to the Scottish Sun.

Doig is a player in-demand this summer following his string of impressive performances for Hibernian in the Scottish Premier League last term.

The 19-year-old emerged as one of the most promising defenders in Scotland over the last year and he managed to make 28 appearances in the league last term scoring once and providing three assists.

It has previously been reported by The Scottish Sun that both Sunderland and Stoke City are amongst the teams that are potentially interested in making a move for Doig. While it was also believed that newly-promoted Watford were in the hunt for his signature.

The latest report from The Scottish Sun has now revealed that the Hornets are the first team to make a move for the 19-year-old.

Watford’s £2.5 million offer has been turned down, but it is expected that the Hornets will return with a fresh offer to try and get the deal done.

The verdict

This is a major blow for both Sunderland and Stoke and it does suggest that neither team are going to be able to secure the signing of Doig this summer.

If bids of £2.5 million are being rejected by Hibernian at this stage then it is highly unlikely that either club is going to be able to find the finances to come in with an acceptable offer for the 19-year-old.

Doig would have been an excellent potential signing for either Stoke or Sunderland and it would certainly have been a major coup for them if they were able to secure his signature.

However, it seems highly unlikely that they would be able to compete with the resources that Watford have to come in with another offer for him.

Hibernian seem to be maintaining a firm stance over Doig and that is fully understandable given the quality that he has to bring to the table and the potential he has to be developed further. Sunderland and Stoke are likely to now have to move on to other potential targets now.