Brighton lining up £10m deal for Preston defender Ben Davies
BRIGHTON are lining up an offer for £10million-rated Preston defender Ben Davies.
The Seagulls have been sending their top scouts to watch the elegant Davies, who is an English ball player.
That ticks two boxes for Brighton boss Graham Potter, who has emerged as the frontrunner to sign Davies despite interest from Newcastle, Everton and Wolves.
Insiders say Brighton will try their luck with a bid in January, although Preston would look for a seven- figure fee.
North End plan to offer Davies a new deal but the Championship promotion chasers know how hard it is to keep a player when a Premier League club comes calling.
The centre-back is a Deepdale academy graduate who broke into the team two years ago after loan spells across the Football League.
High flying Preston are up to third in the Championship after Saturday’s 5-1 mauling of Barnsley.
And commanding defender Davies has played every minute of their league campaign so far, having made 41 appearances last term.
Latest Football News
Brighton meanwhile kept their third clean sheet of the season when downing Tottenham 3-0.
Potter has favoured £22m summer signing Adam Webster alongside Lewis Dunk at the heart of his defence having lost faith in the currently injured Shane Duffy.
Returning loanee Dan Burn has also made a good case when played across the backline while Leon Balogun remains on the fringes.