Preston North End defender Ben Davies will see out his Deepdale contract says Alex Neil

Davies is being pursued by Celtic and there were claims this week that he had signed a pre-contract agreement which would see him move to Parkhead when his PNE contract runs out at the end of June.

Reports have since emerged that they will try and sign him before Monday's transfer deadline in order to take him to Scotland immediately.

Speaking after PNE's 1-0 defeat to Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough, Neil was confident he would have Davies around beyond the deadline.

Neil said: "I fully Ben to be here until the end of the season.

"I think you could see today he was dedicated. For most of the game he was excellent.

"He is such a good player, he reads the game, takes it down comfortably, use the ball really well, he's got speed - a good player."

PNE officials confirmed to the Lancashire Post on Saturday night that the only contact they'd had from Celtic was a message earlier in the week to say they intended speaking to Davies under international transfer rules.

After a busy January with moves both in and out of Deepdale, Neil still hopes some more business can be done before the deadline.

Neil said: "We knew we would make changes this window, it had to happen, we have been crying out to freshen the squad up for a couple of windows I think.

"It has got to the point where it has been forced upon us a little bit, but to be fair we have acted.

"I would like to do another couple but I'm not sure how easy that it going to be."

Thanks for reading. If you value what we do and are able to support us, a digital subscription is just £1 per month for the first two months. Try us today by clicking here