Preston are being linked with Luke Cundle but we can’t really see how a deal for the Wolverhampton Wanderers teenager makes sense right now.
North End took on Wolves in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday and fell to a 2-1 defeat against the Premier League side.
A poor first-half showing was at least followed up by a real fight by Ryan Lowe’s side, with Ben Woodburn finding the net just after half time.
Preston couldn’t quite force penalties though and left Molineux with a defeat.
One surprise claim has emerged though, with the Swansea Independent reporting that Lowe was chasing a transfer after the final whistle.
They state that Lowe spoke with Wolves boss Bruno Lage and young talent Luke Cundle to discuss a loan move to Preston.
Fans may be baffled as to why a Swansea-based website know this information, but the Swans are targeting Cundle and they may well have chased up information about his future.
Still, we just can’t see how Cundle makes sense as a potential Preston signing right now.
Cundle predominantly plays as a midfielder – an area Preston have absolutely no need to recruit in right now.
Ben Whiteman, Alan Browne, Daniel Johnson, Ali McCann, Ryan Ledson and the aforementioned Woodburn are all fighting for playing time; adding a seventh into the mix just doesn’t feel like a sensible use of limited resources.
Cundle, 20, scored seven goals and notched four assists in all competitions last season.
Transfermarkt note that his playing positions were mostly central midfield, holding midfield or attacking midfield, but did score twice in one game as a striker against Newcastle United Under-21’s.
Cundle played as a right-sided winger in a game against Blackburn Rovers Under-21’s earlier this month, but North End don’t play with wingers.
Any move for Cundle would mean that Lowe thinks he can either play as a striker long-term, or be converted into a wing back.
It just doesn’t really make sense for Preston to sign a player and immediately convert him, especially when Lowe has been so specific about what he wants to bring in.
Cundle is a talented young player, even described as a ‘Phil Foden-esque’ by Wolves coach Jamie Collins having impressed in that game as a striker, but it would be gamble to sign him and expect him to play as a forward regularly in the Championship.
A move to Swansea ultimately makes more sense than joining Preston, and we can’t see Cundle arriving at Deepdale unless a midfielder is making a surprise exit in the coming days.