Sunderland manager Steve Bruce has accused Liverpool of "badgering" striker Kenwyne Jones and described the Merseyside club's conduct as "hugely disrespectful".
Jones has been at the centre of sustained speculation in January with reports claiming that he is a target for Liverpool following the sale of Andriy Voronin and an injury sustained by established first-choice striker Fernando Torres.
But Bruce is adamant there has been no contact between the clubs and is angry at what he perceives to be unsettling tactics employed by Liverpool.
Furthermore, the Sunderland manager has no intention of selling a player who has scored six goals and claimed two assists in 17 Premier League appearances this season.
"I find it hugely disrespectful, the antics of Liverpool," Bruce said. "I have huge respect for Liverpool and the way they have done their business and the way they have conducted themselves.
"But I have to say, this constant badgering of Kenwyne Jones when we as a club haven't heard anything, and then I keep reading this nonsense that I'm going to allow him to go on loan because it's a tax advantage for both clubs is the biggest load of rubbish I have read for weeks.
`Kenwyne Jones is not going to go on loan to anybody for the help of Liverpool or anybody else. I would be mad. Now, if Liverpool are going to come and offer an amount of money, then we all know what happens.
"Every player - every player - has got a price and a valuation. I have to say though, it would have to be a huge amount of money for us even to contemplate it with a week to go in the transfer window.
"The only thing it's done is unsettle the boy. It's got him probably in a situation where he thinks I don't want him, which is far from the case. But I can't stop it. Publicly or privately, I can't stop this constant thing of Kenwyne Jones every day.''
Even normally mild-mannered chairman Niall Quinn has been angered by the speculation, and Bruce, who admitted he would have to re-assure Jones he is wanted on Wearside after training today, was at a loss to explain a story which simply refuses to go away.
