PNE CEO Peter Ridsdale discussed interest in the club earlier this month

Preston North End manager Paul Heckingbottom has played down any takeover talk around the club.

The Lilywhites have been owned by the Hemmings family since 2010. They continue to support the club financially, but have been open about stepping aside if the right party were to make a serious approach.

Earlier this month, PNE CEO Peter Ridsdale spoke to the Lancashire Post about interest in North End - and said the ‘quality of phone calls’ had changed. Heckingbottom was asked about that recently and how he approaches it.

“You guys, it’s a big story,” Heckingbottom told BBC Lancashire. “It's not close, it's not near, it's just constant speculation. The amount of people who want to get involved in football now is frightening. And do you know what?

“The amount of meetings that people have, and there's people trying to broker deals and even jumping off the back of it to take money out of football that way. The majority of it, like everything else, is just absolute nonsense and never ever going to get anywhere.

“People either trying to seize an opportunity, or just get a little bit of self-importance for a little while and get themselves in there. (I’ve) experienced so much of it. It's certainly not on our radar and anything that we as coaches and players bother about.”

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