David Moyes has challenged Jermain Defoe to establish himself as a Sunderland great after revealing owner Ellis Short will not sell the forward this month at any price.
The 34-year-old striker has found himself in the headlines in recent days with former club West Ham having firmed up their interest in him with a £6m bid, which was instantly rejected.
Furthermore, the Hammers - and indeed any other interested parties - have been told Defoe, who has scored 11 Premier League goals so far this season, is simply not for sale.
Asked about the situation on a day when differing reports suggested the London club had both tabled an improved £13million bid and ended their interest, Moyes was unequivocal in his response.
He said: "We have had an offer and we told them that he wasn't for sale. It's come from the owner and we have said that he's not for sale.
"We have never asked for a second bid, we have never put a price on him, not at any time. He's really important to us, everybody knows that and the club has already come out and said that.
"There has been very little said from Sunderland Football Club. The talking has all come from other people, not from here."
When asked about talk of a £13million offer, Moyes said: "Totally wrong."
Defoe, who joined the Black Cats from MLS side Toronto in January 2015, signed a contract extension which will keep him at the Stadium of Light until the summer of 2019 in June last year, after his 15 goals last season helped the club fend off the drop to the Sky Bet Championship.
However, Bilic's admiration, coupled with the fact that he grew up with the Hammers after joining them from Charlton as a 16-year-old, have fanned the flames.
Through it all, the man himself has maintained his composure and Moyes is confident he will not be affected by the ongoing saga.
In addition, the Scot is hoping the goals will continue to flow and if they do, he is confident he can join the ranks of the exalted on Wearside alongside the likes of Kevin Phillips and Niall Quinn.
Moyes said: "He's been here, he's liked, very much liked. In a way, he's in a real purple patch in his career, so hopefully he is enjoying it and he's steady with that.
"If he keeps scoring the goals at the rate he is, then he's going to put himself up there because of his goals and what he's done.
"This club has had some really good goalscoring centre-forwards over the years, so I'm sure Jermain will want to get in amongst that group and he's got a great chance."
West Ham have had another bid turned down this week - an offer for Hull midfielder Robert Snodgrass.
Snodgrass turned down a new long-term deal with the Tigers last month, and although the club recently triggered a one-year contract extension on the Scotland international, West Ham have tabled a reported offer of £3m.
A club source said that the bid had been rejected but West Ham are expected to further test Hull's resolve, while the 29-year-old's refusal to commit himself to the KCOM Stadium has alerted several other Premier League clubs.
Hull sacked Mike Phelan on Tuesday night and have wasted little time in appointing Portuguese Marco Silva as his replacement.
Silva was introduced to the media at the club's Cottingham training ground on Friday and West Ham appear to have been ready to take advantage of the upheaval.
Snodgrass has been a stand out player for Hull this season as they have struggled to adapt to life back in the top flight.
The Tigers won only three of their 20 league games under Phelan, who had been hindered by injuries to key players and a lack of investment, but Snodgrass has caught the eye with 12 goals in 25 appearances in all competitions.
The former Leeds and Norwich midfielder missed most of the 2014/15 season and half of the following campaign due to a serious knee injury.
But he has rediscovered his best form with the Tigers this season, scoring in the recent home draw against Everton with a brilliant free-kick - he had hit the crossbar with a similar effort 10 minutes earlier - and also finding the target in Monday's defeat at West Brom.
RUMOURS
Manchester United are ready to pay Antoine Griezmann £220,000 a week to join, according to the Sun, which also reports that United will pay £32.5m for Roma's Greek defender Kostas Manolas.
The Mirror is reporting that Watford striker Odion Ighalo could be sold to Chinese Super League club Shanghai Shenhua this month.
Javier Hernandez, the Bayer Leverkusen striker, has not been the subject of a reported bid, Talksport says.
Aston Villa will have to pay Middlesbrough £10m for Jordan Rhodes, according to the Mirror.
Italian website calciomercato.com is reporting that Patrice Evra has been in negotiations with West Ham over a potential move.
