Burnley's stance on Andy Diouf clarified amid reports an agreement is close

Reports first emerged in France suggesting both the Clarets and their Premier League rivals Crystal Palace are battling it out for the 22-year-old’s signature.

These claims were then followed by a separate report from journalist Alan Nixon, who suggests Scott Parker’s side are eyeing a £17m swoop for the Lens man.

This evening, it’s been claimed in France that Burnley are now in “pole position” to sign Diouf and only minor details remain before a full agreement is reached.

However, the Burnley Express understands that is not the case and there’s no truth to these reports.

Palace have long been admirers of Diouf, identifying him as a potential replacement for Adam Wharton should the England star move on.

The likes of Man City, Tottenham, Aston Villa and Everton are also said to have sent scouts to watch him in action.

The Clarets have signed three new players so far this summer in Max Weiss, Quilindschy Hartman and Axel Tuanzebe.

Lazio winger Loum Tchaouna is reportedly close to becoming signing number four according to transfer guru Fabrizio Romano.

“Loum Tchaouna leaves Lazio and joins Burnley, on his way for medical with his agent,” Romano captioned a picture of Tchaouna on board a private jet with his agent. “€15m [£12.78m] plus sell-on clause confirmed.”

It comes after Lazio president Claudio Lotito recently commented that Tchaouna had been sold for that exact figure – albeit without mentioning Burnley’s name.

Since the end of last season, Burnley have also turned the loans of Bashir Humphreys, Jaidon Anthony, Marcus Edwards and Zian Flemming permanent.

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