The Blues are in the running for the signature of Swindon Town striker Sam Parkin, according to Brighton chairman Dick Knight. The Albion chief says that his club has little chance of signing Parkin now that Town and Norwich are showing interest in the former Chelsea trainee.

Knight says the Seagulls cannot compete financially with the division's bigger clubs while they remain at the Withdean Stadium: "We have made an enquiry about him [Parkin] and I had discussions with [Swindon chairman and former jockey] Willie Carson. He is a proven goalscorer and a quality striker but I think he's too rich for us.

"We have not made a formal bid but we tested the water. They did not turn down my speculative offer but we cannot compete with Norwich and Ipswich until we get a new stadium, even though the player himself had an interest in us.

"The chances of us getting him now are very slim. It's too much for us, even with our nice Coca-Cola windfall."

Watford, set to sell Heidar Helguson for a fee in excess of £1 million over the next few days, have confirmed their interest in the player and are thought to be the current frontrunners for his signature.

Swindon chief executive Sandy Gray revealed at the weekend that they had had a number of bids for the 24-year-old: "All I can say at this stage is that we have had four offers for Sam Parkin and we will be discussing the situation on Monday.

"I can confirm that the offers have been received from clubs in the Championship. It's obviously a situation we need time to look at and to speak with [manager] Andy King."

The Robins are reported to have slapped a £700,000 price-tag on Parkin's head, a figure lower than the £1 million claimed when Town were first linked earlier in the summer.

However, even a fee at the lower level is likely to be beyond the Blues, Joe Royle having only part of the just under £1 million the club received for Kelvin Davis available to spend on players.

Parkin, 6ft 2in tall, has scored 73 goals in 142 appearances with the Robins, having joined on a free transfer from Chelsea in August 2002. While at Stamford Bridge, the Roehampton-born forward spent time on loan at Millwall, Wycombe, Oldham and Northampton.

Parkin himself says he will not be rushed into a decision on his move: "I know offers have been received by the club and I'd be a liar if I said I wasn't interested to hear that they're from clubs in a higher league.

"Everyone is aware of the Watford thing but as a player you're obviously interested to hear all the possibilities.

"One thing's for sure, I won't be making any hasty decisions about my future. Nor will I be pushed into anything.

"I've said before that football reasons will have a big part to play in what happens. It's not all about money. I want the best opportunity to progress my career."

A clause in Parkin's contract, which has another year to run, means that the striker is free to talk to other clubs if they come in with an offer at a certain level, with one of the bids reportedly having met that requirement.

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