Why Preston North End can still sign players after the transfer window has closed

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Alex Neil can in fact still buy and sell players up until the end of August.

Last year, EFL clubs voted to bring the closure of the window in-line with that of Premier League clubs - meaning that the transfer window closed at 5pm on August 9.

But this was only a ‘soft’ closure - with some deals still able to be completed after this deadline.

All permanent signings must be completed by the August 9 deadline, but clubs can still sign players on standard loan deals until August 31 at 5pm.

Indeed, players who are free agents can also be signed up until the August 31 deadline, meaning Neil will have no need to stress if he can’t bring in any new faces before the August 9 window closes.

In terms of outgoings, Neil will still be able to loan out players to Football League clubs and can even sell players after Thursday - providing that the buying club is still within their nation’s respective transfer window.

That means that clubs in Scotland, France, Italy and further afield could all move for PNE players, while North End could also shift some out of favour players off the wage bill.