Valencia sporting director Miguel Angel Corona has fired a hands-off warning to Manchester United and Newcastle United in their pursuit of midfield starlet Javi Guerra.
The Premier League duo have recently been credited with an interest in the highly-rated 20-year-old, who broke into Valencia's first team in April of last season.
Guerra played in each of Valencia's final 10 La Liga matches of the 2022-23 campaign, and the midfielder has since featured in all eight top-flight games this term, scoring three goals an providing one assist.
Both Man United and Newcastle are understood to have scouted the Spain Under-21 international in recent months as they weigh up a move in 2024.
However, Valencia chief Corona has insisted that the La Liga club have no plans to cash in on Guerra any time soon, and he hopes that the youngster can develop into "an important player" under head coach Ruben Baraja.
© Reuters
Speaking in an interview with the Daily Mail, Corona said: "We are fully aware that we have a player with enormous potential for the future and the ability to perform at a good level now.
"That is why the club have decisively moved him up to the first team in recent months. It is not in our plans to sell him to any club."
Guerra committed his future to Valencia in May when he penned a new four-year contract extension, keeping him tied to the Mestalla until the summer of 2027, which includes a €100m (£86m) release clause.
"Our future plans involve continuing to give him the appropriate condition so that he is able to develop his full potential under Ruben Baraja, become an important player and continue to build a Valencia team of the immediate future around players like him," Corona added.
© Reuters
"For us, the emergence of Javi Guerra has not been a surprise. We have been aware of what he is capable of for a long time, we have been helping him and demanding more from him every step of the way, from youth level to the elite.
"He has to continue working in this way. We have to be cautious when making assessments about his level or how far he will be able to go, as he is a young player and has a long way ahead of him, but only he, with his day-to-day work, will determine where his limit is."
Academy graduate Guerra admitted in May that he was persuaded to stay at Valencia and turn down a move to England this summer, telling reporters: "They advise me to stay the same, not to change, because all this has cost a lot of work and we have to continue like this."
After narrowly avoiding relegation last season, Valencia are aware that they must make vast improvements this term and seek to secure European qualification if they wish to keep hold of key players such as Guerra.
The Daily Mail claims that scouts of English clubs will be monitoring Guerra when Valencia take on Real Mallorca in La Liga on Saturday night.
