Preston North End transfer state of play amid Milutin Osmajic and Jeppe Okkels links
Transfer talk around the PNE duo has swirled in recent days
Preston North End have received no offers for striker Milutin Osmajic, it’s understood.
The Montenegrin has made a flying start to his third season at Deepdale, scoring in all three Championship games so far against QPR, Leicester and Ipswich. Osmajic has two years left to run on his contract at North End, having joined for a reported £2.1million from Cadiz in 2023.
In the last week or so, Italian trio Lecce, Sassuolo and Cremonese have been credited with interest in the 26-year-old - with latest reports from Gianluca Di Marzio suggesting that the latter are preparing a bid. It’s believed there is interest on Cremonese’s part but that no approach has been made yet.
Manager Paul Heckingbottom made clear his intention to keep hold of the front man when asked in last week’s press conference. Spanish side Deportivo have also been linked this month but the PNE boss didn’t expect any club to meet his valuation - which is thought to be around the £15m mark, given the window shuts on September 1.
Another Preston player has been the subject of transfer talk in the last week, that being Jeppe Okkels. As reported, the winger has held talks with a Danish club and there is thought to be an offer on the table from a Dutch side too. Both of those would be loans with options-to-buy, with the Danish package a stronger offer.
On Monday, reports surfaced that Swedish top flight club Djurgardens have agreed a deal to sign Okkels. While the Allsvenskan side are understood to be admirers of the 26-year-old, those claims are believed to be wide of the mark. Okkels had previous success in Sweden with Elfsborg.
It was from there he made the switch to FC Utrecht, with whom he spent eight months before joining PNE on a permanent deal - for a fee in excess of £1m. Okkels made 10 appearances for the Lilywhites and then reunited with old boss Jimmy Thelin, for a loan spell at Aberdeen in the second half of the 2024/25 season.
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