January 1st is upon us, and that means Preston have a big transfer window ahead of them this month.
The transfer window only officially opens on Saturday, but make no mistake – Preston already know the work ahead of them this month.
Four key players are out of contract at the end of the season; Ben Davies, Ben Pearson, Alan Browne and Daniel Johnson.
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Today is a particularly big day in the cases of Davies, Pearson and Johnson, because they have interest from Scotland – and they can sign pre-contract agreements from today.
Inside the final six months of their deals with Preston, they can sign pre-contract deals with non-English clubs, so North End may be looking over the shoulders at Celtic and Rangers.
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Sky Sports claim that Celtic have already made contact to sign Pearson, wasting no time in pursuing a pre-contract agreement.
The Bhoys have also fancied Davies for months now, meaning they could pursue a similar deal for the centre back.
As for Johnson, Rangers had a £1.5million bid rejected over the summer, and it would make sense for them to still be interested in signing him.
Celtic wanting Pearson is an early warning for North End, that key players could commit to deal north of the border very quickly – and it would then be up to the club to decide whether to simply see out the deals or look to cash in this month.