David Nugent needs to play regular football - Alex Neil

The veteran striker has been told he is available for transfer by PNE despite having a year left on his current deal.

Neil said that Nugent had reached a stage in his career where he needed to be playing regularly and that is something which cannot be guaranteed at Deepdale.

Rather than leave him languishing on the sidelines, Neil is keen to see Nugent continue his career fully elsewhere.

But should he still be at the club after the transfer window closes on October 5, will the former England forward remain in the manager's thoughts?

"I think we will have to cross that bridge when we get to it," said Neil.

"Nuge has reached a stage in his career where he needs to be playing week in, week out and unfortunately at the moment we can't guarantee him that.

"So if something comes up for Nuge which works well for him, then it will certainly be something he could look at."

Nugent rejoined North End last summer more than a decade after leaving the club in a multi-million pound transfer to Portsmouth.

A firm favourite with PNE supporters having scored 37 times in just over 100 appearances for the Lilywhites during that first spell, his arrival last year certainly captured the imagination.

Unfortunately, Nugent - who also played for Leicester and Burnley, as well as Pompey, in the Premier League - failed to spark during his second stint at Deepdale, scoring just one goal in 25 appearances.

"Obviously Nuge was a part of the squad last season and in certain games, he did well," said Neil.

"In terms of goals, I think he would probably agree that he would have liked to have scored more, but it's just one of those where he will want more regular football and we can't provide that."