Slaven Bilic says West Ham United will be doing everything to keep Dimitri Payet at the Club and insists he is a crucial part of the first-team squad.
Payet has been one of the star performers for the Hammers following his move from Marseille back in June 2015 and has become a cult hero with the West Ham supporters.
The 29-year-old was one of the star performers at the European Championship Finals for the host nation France during the summer and was recently nominated for the prestigious Ballon d'Or award.
Bilic is not surprised that Payet is attracting so many headlines, but feels the Club are showing a big statement of intent that they want to keep him at the Club.
Bilic said: “That is our statement. We don’t want to sell him. He is our top player and like with any other player, especially great ones, there is speculation. He has a long contract and we will do everything we can to ensure he stays with us.
“West Ham are showing a strong statement that we want to keep our best player but you can’t stop the speculation.
“We all knew it would happen - stories, rumours in the media. That’s why it was important the board said they wanted to keep him.
“I spoke to him a few times of course. He plays every game for us and has a long contract. We treat him the best possible way, he knows we want him to stay.
“He has the status and has the ambition. He is competing with the best players as he is playing in the Premier League.
“The speculation does not come from us, we can’t stop it, it happens with players playing in good form. I played my best football when other clubs showed interest in me as it proves you are doing good.”