Preston North End are being linked with Wigan Athletic defender Jack Whatmough amid claims he could leave for nothing.
The Telegraph’s Mike McGrath caused quite the storm on Thursday.
McGrath reported that Whatmough could be at the centre of a transfer race this summer because of his Wigan contract situation.
McGrath suggested that Whatmough was able to leave Wigan for free due to repeated non-payment of wages last season.
Bristol City, Coventry City, PNE and Queens Park Rangers were all claimed to be interested in Whatmough alongside other clubs.
Those claims sparked anger from Wigan fans, who highlighted that wages have now been paid and Whatmough is under contract until 2025.
However, Wigan Today claim that some players who were paid late three times or more are still able to leave for free this summer.
Whatmough could well be one of them as Wigan allegedly face losing a number of players this summer.
Do Preston North End need Jack Whatmough?
The links to PNE may have some weight behind them with this update about the Wigan contract situation.
Yet some fans will wonder if PNE need Whatmough right now.
The 26-year-old has mostly played in the middle of a back three for Wigan.
Whilst that history in a back three may suit PNE, it’s hard to see another option arriving in that area.
Bambo Diaby, Liam Lindsay and Patrick Bauer are all at their best in the middle of Ryan Lowe’s back three and are fighting for one spot.
Diaby and Lindsay have been tried on the right and left respectively but are clearly more comfortable in the middle.
Unless Bauer moves on, it’s hard to see PNE recruiting another player for that position.
Maybe PNE would want Whatmough on the right side, with Jordan Storey attracting interest from Sheffield Wednesday.
Whether Whatmough has the pace to play that wide centre back role is up for debate though, even if his reading of the game has impressed at Wigan.
This could be a case of PNE trying to take advantage of a rare situation, somewhat like signing Tom Barkhuizen from Morecambe in 2017, but we can’t really see Whatmough being a top target.