Preston North End 'chasing' ex-Everton man who recently shone at Deepdale and is out of contract soon
The former Everton and Southampton man joined Charlton Athletic in 2024
Preston North End have been credited with interest in Charlton Athletic star Thierry Small.
The Lilywhites recently faced the Addicks in the FA Cup third round at Deepdale and Small played the full game for the visitors. Now, journalist Alan Nixon reports that PNE have identified the 20-year-old as a potential summer transfer target.
Small is a left-footed wide player capable of operating on both sides, in a variety of roles. His pace and power caused Preston some problems in the January encounter and that performance is said to have alerted North End’s scouts.
Should the Lilywhites push on with a move this summer and succeed, the transfer fee would be decided by a tribunal. Small is out of contract at the end of the season but if players under-24 do not agree a new deal with an English club, then compensation must be agreed.
Small came through the youth ranks at West Brom and Everton. He left the latter in 2021 despite being made an ‘unbelievable’ offer by the Toffees. Small had caught the eye of Carlo Ancelotti, who made him Everton’s youngest ever player in 2021 during a FA Cup game with Sheffield Wednesday.
He signed for the Saints but only made one appearance for the first team, with loan spells at Port Vale and St Mirren. Small, a former England youth international, was then picked up by Charlton in February 2024 on a short-term deal with option.
A couple of months later Charlton tried to tie Small down to a long-term contract at The Valley but had to settle for triggering a one-year extension. Technical Director, Andy Scott, stated that negotiations with Small’s representatives would continue over a longer contract.
Does Thierry Small fit the bill for PNE?
It’s a link that makes sense for North End. The wide players in Heckingbottom’s fluid system have a big onus on them to do both sides of the game. Kaine Kesler-Hayden has particularly impressed the PNE boss this campaign with how he has carried that role out.
But, the Aston Villa man is on loan and will head back to his parent club this summer. The same applies to January recruit Jayden Meghoma. Meanwhile, Robbie Brady is out of contract in six months and it remains to be seen whether he will be offered fresh terms.
There will be vacancies in the wide departments for Preston this summer and Small has the athletic traits to thrive in Heckingbottom’s side. The North End chief has also spoken about reducing the age of the squad and signing potential assets for the club on permanent deals.
In that respect Small - while not the finished article - would be a step in the right direction due to his pedigree, power and age. Heckingbottom discussed his wing-back roles last week and suggested he’d be looking for similar profiles to Kesler-Hayden and Meghoma.
“Yeah, the thing that Kaine’s done really well is being able to contribute in the attack whilst still being really good defensively for us,” said Heckingbottom. “It's hard to find players like that so yes, if you can get players like that, then it's ideal.”