Eagles star Elliot Yeo says he was “annoyed” and “frustrated” when his cousin alerted him to rumours he was heading to Carlton as trade for WA-raised star Patrick Cripps.

Speaking on 96fm on Wednesday, Yeo slammed the report by 7NEWS’ Tom Browne and described the story as “disrespectful”.

“To report something like that, you’d have to have some sort of credible source but now it seems like the news is almost like TV Weekly and it’s just gossip,” he said.

“If journalism’s gone to the point where we just report the rumours, then anyone can do it.

“You don’t need to go to university for that.

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“What do you do about it other than put your hands up and go: ‘What a silly statement to make’.”

Browne took to social media on Monday night to state the Eagles were “circling Patrick Cripps” and would “look at trading Yeo”.

Yeo said he never heard from Browne before the trade rumours were made public and revealed it was a family member who made him aware.

“I know nothing, so I get a message from my cousin in Melbourne when obviously it was reported,” he said.

“He said, ‘Look, I hear you’re going to Carlton’. I said: ‘That’s the first I’ve heard about it’.

“I’ve got to thank (7Perth journalist Ryan Daniels) for jumping on the front foot and shutting it down pretty quickly.”

Yeo, who is contracted at the Eagles until the end of 2023, remains sidelined as he recovers from a lengthy battle with osteitis pubis.

The 27-year-old hasn’t played since last August but remains hopeful of a return around the mid-season bye.