Preston North End keen on swooping for versatile Charlton Athletic man | OneFootball

Preston North End are keen on signing Thierry Small.

Preston North End are keen on signing Charlton Athletic's versatile 20-year-old wideman Thierry Small.

This is according to journalist Alan Nixon, who has detailed North End's interest in a post on his Patreon account.

Paul Heckingbottom's side have been in decent form in recent weeks and made it four games unbeaten in the league with a 2-1 victory on Saturday over play-off-chasing Middlesbrough.

This January they have made some subtle additions by adding Brentford loanee Jayden Meghoma and Plymouth Argyle defender Lewis Gibson to the squad, both of whom have featured prominently since their arrival.

And it now appears that Small is on their list, especially after a promising showing against the Lilywhites in the FA Cup third round earlier in the month, and the 20-year-old could be an excellent addition to strengthen Heckingbottom's wing-back options in the future - although it may not be an immediate deal.

Thierry Small on Preston North End radar but deal may have to wait until summer

As outlined in the aforementioned post, Nixon reports that Preston have added Small to their list of targets ahead of a potential summer 2025 move.

While a transfer for the youngster could be arranged this January, it is understood that Heckingbottom and his staff are willing to wait until June, when the wing-back's contract at The Valley expires.

Should North End choose this approach, they would still be required to pay a fee due to Small’s age, with a tribunal set to determine the valuation.

Having been impressed by the 20-year-old during their FA Cup tie earlier this month, Preston view him as a potential option for either wing-back role.

This interest has prompted the club’s top scout to follow up, with Small being watched in subsequent fixtures for Charlton, where despite being a left-back by trade he has been playing in recent weeks under Nathan Jones as a right-winger.

If Preston were to secure his services immediately, it could help alleviate the workload on several players, with Small potentially being seen as an ideal replacement for Meghoma when his loan deal expires at Deepdale at the end of the season.

Thierry Small is finally living up to his potential that was invested upon as a teenager

Charlton initially signed Small last February on a short-term deal and had the option of a further year, which they exercised to keep him at The Valley until the conclusion of this campaign.

While he may not have been at his best throughout this period, he has shown moments of quality, such as in the FA Cup tie against Preston where he set up Luke Berry's goal in their 2-1 defeat.

The youngster was even lucky enough to find his first goal of the season on Saturday as his last-gasp winner ensured all three points against Shrewsbury Town.

It's taken a little while for Small to find his feet within the professional game, having been a promising academy prospect for Everton before leaving Goodison Park in 2021 to sign for Southampton.

Having turned down £1.5 million in compensation for Small as they believed he was worth closer to £5 million, despite being out of contract, Everton had to settle for Small's move to St Mary's Stadium being sorted out at a tribunal, of which the total figure was never revealed.