SWINDON Town technical director Sandro Di Michele says the club has presented out-of-contract midfielder Jack Payne with “an incredible offer” and can do no more in terms of convincing him to sign a new deal.

Payne is one of five Town men whose futures had not been decided as of July 1 – the date on which players officially become free agents.

Akin Odimayo, Rob Hunt, and Jordan Lyden have not publicly declared where they will be playing football next season while Harry Parsons recently signed a new deal with Town.

But it’s 27-year-old Payne who Town fans are most keen to see in red and white next season as the club aims to recover from a stinging play-off defeat and mount a promotion push under new head coach Scott Lindsey.

Asked where the situation has been left with Payne and the possibility of him signing a new contract with Town, Di Michele said: “We’ve put an unbelievably strong offer to Jack Payne – an incredibly strong offer.

“I completely see this situation from Jack’s point of view - he wants to play at the highest possible level and he wants to see what else is out there. At the moment, that’s the situation and it hasn’t really moved.

“We’d love Jack Payne to sign for us and be a part of the club and a part of our project.

“When I talk about it being a competitive offer, it is an incredible offer. I can’t really go into too much detail, obviously, but it is serious money that we’re talking about here.

“We’ve done everything we possibly can in terms of the package we’ve put to him. But I get it, I see it from both sides.”

According to reports elsewhere, Payne is wanted by several other English Football League clubs including Sheffield Wednesday, Portsmouth, and Charlton Athletic.

Wednesday were said to be the early front-runners before recent stories suggested Danny Cowley’s Pompey had sat down for talks with the 27-year-old.

Cowley has previously worked with Payne at Lincoln City, where the dynamic midfielder played 10 times prior to the manager’s decision to leave for Huddersfield Town.

However, according to The News in Portsmouth: “it’s doubtful whether Payne is the type of player the Blues need at this time or fits the bill in terms of profile.”

After joining Town as a free agent in 2020, Payne has gone on to score 18 goals and record 13 assists in all competitions over the course of 88 appearances.