Preston North End boss on transfer state of play amid Nottingham Forest and Wigan Athletic links

Preston North End manager Paul Heckingbottom insists the club must be ready to act in the final few days of the transfer window.

Monday is the final day for clubs to wheel and deal. So far, PNE have recruited Lewis Gibson permanently and Jayden Meghoma on loan. That looked like it might be North End done in terms of incoming business in the mid-season window.

However, a nasty injury to midfielder and captain Ben Whiteman has opened up the possibility of Preston signing someone in that department. Nottingham Forest man Lewis O’Brien is one player to be linked; Heckingbottom isn’t overly confident but wants PNE to remain active.

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“You'd always like one but affording one and getting one is totally different,” Heckingbottom told the Lancashire Post. “You’d say that for every position. We did our business early, what we needed to do... because, what's the point in waiting until the end and wasting games?

“We got two players who we know were desperate to come here and fit into what we're about, which is great. So now we've got that balance and we've got the squad that we need, but we have to be ready at the drop of a hat, if something happens or an opportunity is created.”

The PNE boss added: “We're always working hard. Generally, towards the end of the window we're not instigating anything. So we're led by the clubs.

“But the amount of frantic action that's generally needed, or people think they have to do towards the end of the window, means there's always a knock-on effect. So, I would have thought we'd be involved in it somehow. We generally always are.”

“We’re looking at so many players.”

Reports emerged on Tuesday suggesting PNE had submitted a bid for highly rated Wigan Athletic goalkeeper Sam Tickle. That speculation was played down by Latics boss Shaun Maloney and Heckingbottom’s response was predictably straight-bat.

“No, I think you've asked me these questions often enough to know what the answer's going to be,” said Heckingbottom. “It's the same all the time and sometimes you laugh, sometimes it's mischief on other people's part and sometimes it's agents looking to help their players.

“We're looking at so many players, so many players. We want to be in a position that, come the summer, we know we're making good decisions on our own players. You know, with the loan players we're losing, or people who want to leave here, that we've got a number of realistic targets that we can go and get. And, do you know what?

“We could have a list of one to five for every position we think we might need and you never get your plan A... never. So, there'll be many of those lists for whatever position where none of the five come. Then you have to adapt and roll with it and get someone else. So yeah, that's always ongoing but I'm never going to say yeah or no to any names.”