Fulham will not sanction the departure of Tom Cairney from Craven Cottage this summer.

What's the talk?

That's according to Reach journalist Darren Witcoop, who revealed in a post on Twitter that Marco Silva's side have informed Slavisa Jokanovic that the 30-year-old is not available to purchase in the summer transfer window.

The journalist goes on to state that the former Fulham manager had made the central midfielder his top transfer target this summer, however, as a result of the Cottagers' stance regarding the Scotland international, the 52-year-old will now be turning his attention towards Aston Villa midfielder Conor Hourihane.

In his post, Witcoop said: "Fulham insisting Jokanovic’s top target Tom Cairney not for sale."

Fans surely buzzing

Considering just how important a part of the Fulham side Cairney has been in recent years, the news that the Championship side are refusing to sell the 30-year-old this summer, particularly to one of their most likely promotion rivals next season, is sure to have left fans of the club buzzing.

Indeed, while a knee injury kept the midfielder sidelined for a great deal of the club's Premier League campaign last season, the £8.1m-rated man nevertheless impressed over his ten Premier League appearances, scoring one goal, registering one assist and creating one big chance for his teammates, as well as making an average of 1.7 key passes and taking 1.2 shots per game.

These returns saw the man Scott Parker dubbed an "outstanding" player earn an average SofaScore match rating of 7.28, ranking him as the club's best performer in the top flight of English football, albeit with a limited sample size of fixtures played in.

However, the Scot also proved his quality over 38 Championship appearances in the season before last, scoring eight goals, providing three assists and creating six big chances for his teammates, with these returns seeing him earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 7.12 - the second-best rating of any Fulham player that year.

As such, it is quite clear to see why Fulham are reluctant to allow their club captain to leave Craven Cottage this summer, as the midfielder's presence in the side very much appears to bring the Cottagers a great deal of success.

In other news: Silva set to battle Parker for "excellent" £10k-p/w beast, Fulham fans would love him