EXCLUSIVE: Burnley return with third bid for Sunderland star Jack Clarke

Burnley are refusing to give up on Sunderland winger Jack Clarke and have submitted third offer for the winger, Sunderland Nation can reveal.

The Premier League newcomers have identified Clarke as one of the standout performers in the Championship after a season in which the 22-year-old produced 23 goal contributions for the Black Cats.

However, while Sunderland are understood to be open to at least testing the market, it would take an enormous offer to prise Clarke from their grasp this summer – and Burnley are still falling a long way short of it.

Clarke is one of a plethora of quality players at Sunderland that are attracting serious Premier League interest. Anthony Patterson (Wolves), Dan Neil (Crystal Palace), and Dan Ballard (West Ham) are also the subject of speculation this summer, and Ross Stewart is wanted by Luton Town.

However, Sunderland sporting director Kristjaan Speakman has assured fans that the club are not a selling club by design, so other clubs will need to do something extraordinary to get any top players away from Wearside.

"The strategy is to build a winning team," Speakman said last week.

"Maybe we’ve miscommunicated a little from our side, or maybe it’s just that it’s such a change from what Sunderland have done previously, we’ve swung into ‘we’re just buying players to sell and develop.’

"We’re trying to find the best talent to build the right team, to get promoted. And the by-product of that will be that if we don’t get promoted and players do really, really well - then naturally you’ve got saleable assets and the whole process can move forward a little bit quicker [because you can reinvest].

"We’re looking for continuous growth and we want consistency from season to season, that’s what the best teams and clubs do."

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