The 2 Preston North End players most likely to attract transfer interest in January | OneFootball

Preston North End will be hoping to make a push for the play-offs this season despite the limited budget they have compared with many other sides in the Championship.

Although they have endured a mixed start to the season, they are currently in midtable and with teams packed closely together in the division, the number of points they have accumulated has given them a platform to push on.

Fresh from their 4-2 defeat against local rivals Blackpool, that will only provide them with more fuel to push themselves up the second tier with many of their players looking to impress in the coming months.

Quiz: Which English club do these 24 ex-Preston North End players play for now?

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Tom Bayliss

Fleetwood Morecambe Port Vale Shrewsbury

Manager Ryan Lowe will be hoping to recruit some fresh faces in January to add more depth but if they can sustain a promotion push between now and the start of the winter window, he may need to focus more on retaining his current first-team squad.

Managing to maintain most of his key assets in the summer despite losing valuable loanees Cameron Archer, Daniel Iversen and Sepp van den Berg, Lowe will be hopeful of retaining stability at Deepdale in the winter by keeping the core of his team together.

But there are players who are likely to be the subject of interest when next year comes along and we discuss just two first-teamers who could potentially be set for a move away from the Lancashire outfit.

Liam Lindsay

Soccer Football – Championship – Coventry City v Preston North End – Coventry Building Society Arena, Coventry, Britain – August 31, 2022 Preston North End’s Liam Lindsay celebrates after the match Action Images/Andrew Couldridge EDITORIAL USE ONLY

The central defender has been in superb form for the Lilywhites for much of this season, potentially a surprise to those who haven’t seen him raise his performance levels to his current standard until 2022/23.

Unfortunately for Preston, his contract runs out next summer and there’s a real chance they could lose him for free if he isn’t offered a new contract or refuses to sign fresh terms.

If he doesn’t commit his long-term future to the club between now and January, the club may look to offload him to raise some cash for a potential replacement.

However, it may not make sense to accept an offer in the winter considering the instability it would cause in Preston’s backline.

But he may not be short of interest after playing a crucial part in helping his side to keep seven consecutive clean sheets in the league at the start of this term.

As well as this, his contract situation may give teams the confidence to think they can afford to lure him away from Deepdale during the next window, so his situation is one to keep an eye on when the next calendar year comes around.

Emil Riis

Soccer Football – Championship – Blackpool v Preston North End – Bloomfield Road, Blackpool, Britain – October 22, 2022 Preston North End’s Emil Riis in action with Blackpool ‘s Liam Bridcutt Action Images/Paul Burrows EDITORIAL USE ONLY

The Dane has endured an inconsistent season and that’s why it was tempting to go for Freddie Woodman instead – but there’s every chance the forward will turn it on again between now and January and add to the four league goals he’s scored so far this term.

Already reported to have been the subject of interest from Middlesbrough in the summer, other teams may end up taking an interest in him, although Lowe may be more worried about Boro than any other potential party at this stage considering the fact they can probably fork out what’s needed to lure him away from Deepdale.

Selling Djed Spence and Marcus Tavernier during the previous window, the Teesside outfit have some breathing room as they look to abide by the EFL’s profitability and sustainability rules.

The good news for Preston is the fact they will be able to hold out for a sizeable fee after seeing him put pen to paper on fresh terms last October, keeping him at the club until the summer of 2025.

With Troy Parrott out of action at the moment though and Archer no longer in Lancashire, Riis has become even more important than he previously was.