BURNLEY’S pursuit of Brighton midfielder Dale Stephens looks set to go to the wire after sources on the south coast revealed the Seagulls have knocked back a fourth bid from Turf Moor.

The Clarets are desperate to bring in another proven central midfielder before tomorrow night’s transfer deadline day.

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And while they have secured club record signing Steven Defour on a three-year deal, they have also been on the trail of Stephens and Derby midfielder Jeff Hendrick, who looks set to join Hull City for £10m, for weeks.

Burnley’s last bid for the Seagulls man is believed to be around £5.5million, leaving the Clarets to decide if they will try again before the deadline closes.

Stephens, 27, has less than a year left on his current deal at the Amex and has only made one start for Chris Hughton’s men this season. He was an unused substitute in their 2-0 defeat at Newcastle on Saturday.

But Brighton, who were beaten to automatic promotion by Burnley last season before going on to lose to Sheffield Wednesday in the play-off semi-finals, seem determined to keep hold of their top players or, at least, drive up the price.

Burnley boss Sean Dyche, who faces competition with Hull City for Hendrick, is keen to bring in a few more, but has warned that while there is money available, it is dwarfed by the riches at places like Stamford Bridge, where he saw his side lose 3-0 on Saturday.

He said: “The TV money can only be used with immediacy if you’ve got a backer who’s going to carry the can for the next three, four, five, six years.

“We’ve got wealthy people on the board, but they’re not wealthy at the same level as the people at Chelsea, and at Leicester they have a couple of shekels in their pocket as well - they’ve done alright for themselves.

“We’re just not in that market and it’s difficult for me as manager; you’re managing a club where there’s a reality, where there’s not a lot of reality going on in the division.

“The teams we are probably pitched in with, like Bournemouth, they’ve probably spent £45m this year, and £42m last year, so it makes you realise how difficult it is with the finance and the reality that brings, which is quality, usually, if you recruit well.”