SWANSEA City are stocking up ammunition for another assault on Wanderers for midfield asset Mark Davies .

Swans chairman Huw Jenkins confirmed the Welsh club were in the market for the 24-year-old, and it is understood a bid of just over £4million was rejected on Tuesday night.

Wanderers are holding out for double that figure – but with Michael Laudrup’s coffers about to be boosted by the £10m sale of Joe Allen to Liverpool or Tottenham, it seems only a matter of time before they up the ante.

Jenkins refused to disclose details of his club’s unsuccessful bid but told sources in South Wales yesterday: “Mark Davies is a good young player who we have talked about for a number of months.”

Allen is due in for talks at the Liberty Stadium today to sort out his future, and has a clause in his contract which allows him to move to one of the “Big Five” for £12m. Confusingly, his contract also allows him to move elsewhere for £10m, which has also alerted Tottenham boss Andre Villas-Boas.

Whether Liverpool or Spurs do the deal, Swans manager Michael Laudrup should already have cash in hand after the club were unsuccessful with a £6.8m bid for Gylfi Sigurdsson last month.

Wanderers have refused to comment publicly on Davies’ future but it is thought they are willing to dig in their heels for a fair valuation. The playmaker’s former club Wolves have a hefty sell-on fee and would be due a slice of any profit above the £1million the Whites paid them in the summer of 2009.

Coyle is planning to start the season with Davies in tow, and was pleased to see the midfielder produce his best performance of the summer in Tuesday night’s 3-1 victory over Tranmere.

The Whites boss took his young charge aside prior to kick off to discuss the Swansea bid and his recent inconsistency, and was pleased with the results.

“I had a chat with Mark prior to the game and told him that he’d done all his fitness work , and even though these games are designed to get us ready for August 18, he’s got to start putting it together,” he said.

“We’ve got a young team, loaded with pace, and I think it was important that we saw him take the game by the scruff of the neck. And he did.

“I don’t ever expect players to come in and click their fingers and for it all to be sorted. Everyone wants to come in and win all their pre-season games. But you’ve got to show a progression and learn good habits to take into the new season.

“The important thing is that you are ready to peak on August 18, and I think that was Mark’s best game for a while.”