Exclusive: Preston respond after £5m bid submitted for Ben Davies | OneFootball

Preston North End have rejected a £5million bid from Bournemouth for Celtic target Ben Davies, Football Insider can reveal.

The 2019-20 Premier League club have made a move to beat the Scottish giants to the capture of the centre-back.

But Preston have knocked back the offer from Bournemouth for Davies, 25, even though he has entered the final nine months of his contract.

The English Championship outfit are holding out for a higher fee for a player regarded as one of the best in his position in the division.

Bournemouth want a proven centre-back signed before the transfer window cut-off after the £40million-plus sale of Nathan Ake to Man City.

Football Insider revealed at the end of last month that Celtic have set their sights on signing Davies as a potential Kristoffer Ajer replacement.

There are major doubts over the future of the giant Norwegian, who is believed to be one of the wantaway senior stars Neil Lennon was referring to in the wake of the devastating Champions League exit.

He has been targeted by Premier League and top Italian clubs this year and has rejected a number of attempts from the Glasgow giants to extend his contract expiring in 2022.

Davies has been targeted by the leading clubs north and south of the border after his impressive 2019-20 Championship campaign.

The Englishman is was a key man for Preston last season as they punched above their weight to narrowly miss out on a play-off spot.

He made 36 Championship starts at centre-back and has accumulated 126 appearances for his boyhood club.

Davies played the full 90 minutes of Saturday’s opening-day 1-0 league defeat to Swansea City.

Davies, the namesake of the Tottenham and Wales star who plays mainly at left-back, has also gained major playing experience from loans at Fleetwood Town, York City, Newport County, Tranmere Rovers and Southport.

In other Celtic news, Kevin Phillips has been blown away after the club agree terms of deal worth more than £4million in total.