Earlier today, Sky Sports reported that Celtic were in advanced talks to sign Preston defender Ben Davies on a pre-contract agreement.
There have been some updates to this story since our report at 5:30pm, so le’s dig into what’s been happening tonight.
North End have now confirmed to the Lancashire Evening Post that they have received contact from Celtic informing them of their intention to speak to Davies.
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Celtic don’t actually have to do that given that Davies is inside the final six months of his contract and free to move on, but they showed some common courtesy by contacting Preston first.
Additionally, Lyall Thomas of Sky Sports now reports that Celtic are in fact keen to get Davies on board this month rather than in the summer.
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Given that Celtic made contact with Preston earlier today, it’s more than reasonable to think that a permanent deal can be worked out now.
Celtic may choose to get the pre-contract done and then use that to leverage Preston into selling Davies on the cheap this summer, rather than losing him for nothing.
The 25-year-old has been outstanding of late even despite all the speculation surrounding his future, and was superb against Reading on Sunday.
Losing a quick, elegant ball-player at the back with great reading of the game would be devastating for Preston, and the club may soon have to decide whether to take the limited cash and try to find a replacement, or keep him in the lineup and just let him go in the summer for nothing.