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Maurice - We're trying for at least one

Maurice - We're trying for at least one

BigMarkLeonard

BigMarkLeonard

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Jun 28, 2004
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Preston are closing in on Hull City skipper Ian Ashbee as they look to beef up their midfield ahead of the closure of the transfer window tonight.

The 34-year-old handed in a transfer request to the Tigers over the weekend and was left out of their squad when they faced league leaders Queens Park Rangers on Saturday.
Ashbee was Phil Brown’s captain during his reign at the KC Stadium, with the North End boss seeing him as exactly the right kind of player and character he now needs in the PNE dressing room as they fight against relegation.
It would be a permanent transfer if negotiations are successful, Preston looking to keep their remaining loan slots available for the Football League’s loan window which opens next week until the end of March.
Ashbee has been with Hull for eight-and-a-half years having previously played for Cambridge United and Derby.
He’s made over 250 appearances for them, battling back from a serious knee injury which ruled him out of all last season to become a regular again this term – he was in the Tigers side which won 2-0 at Deepdale in November.
Strengthening the centre of midfield will be the priority in the run-up to tonight’s 11pm deadline, North End not currently blessed with too many fully-fit options in the engine room.
The front line was bolstered on Friday with the signing of Leon Clarke on loan from QPR for the rest of the season.
North End also attempted to buy Chris Iwelumo from Burnley, with a transfer fee agreed with the Clarets.
But the deal broke down over personal terms, the salary which the Scotland international gets at Turf Moor far in excess of Preston’s wage structure.
It wasn’t a case of getting Clarke or Iwelumo, Brown wanted them both to give him plenty of options up front.
So it might be that he casts his net out for another striker today, or when the loan window opens.
PNE chairman Maurice Lindsay told the Evening Post: “We are trying to get at least one more player in.
“The transfer window system isn’t one I like, it only seems to benefit agents, so you’ve got to be very careful in January.
“We need to strengthen though, and we’ve been working very hard with Phil to try and bring in the players he wants.
“A few have gone against us, we’ve been unlucky with a couple, but that is the way things go sometimes.
“Before the weekend we tried to get Iwelumo from Burnley.
“We agreed a transfer fee but his wages would have smashed our wage bill to pieces.
“While we’ve got to be ambitious, we’ve also got to consider the financial position of the club.
“Phil liked Iwelumo a lot, but he understands that the club got into difficulties because it was paying wages beyond its means.
“We were looking to sign both him and Leon Clarke to give Phil a strong hand when it came to strikers.”
It was frustration all round on Saturday when North End’s crunch relegation clash against Scunthorpe was postponed for a second time because areas of the Glanford Park pitch was frozen.
The majority of PNE’s estimated 1,200 travelling fans were already en route, while the team had travelled to North Lincolnshire the day before.
Referee Darren Sheldrake made two inspections of the pitch on Saturday morning, the main concern being a frozen area in one of the goalmouths.
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http://www.lep.co.uk/sport/football/ashbee_on_pne_radar_1_2991836
 
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Dan_The_Man said:
Glad they stuck to their guns regarding the wage structure, look where not sticking to it got us last time !!
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Do what Blackpool did. Low wages with a juicy bonus if we stay up depending on how many games played.


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dylanesque said:
Maybe I'm wrong but I bet if the Ashbee deal falls through Brown will be falling out with the board . Only speculation on my part mind.
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If the board dont back brown phil in his attempts to bring players in and keep us up i'd fully support him if he not only resigned but went to the press and spilled the beans on just what we have in the boardroom at pne
Hopefully it wont come to that
 
yoga said:
If the board dont back brown phil in his attempts to bring players in and keep us up i'd fully support him if he not only resigned but went to the press and spilled the beans on just what we have in the boardroom at pne
Hopefully it wont come to that
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I can see it now - "Breaking news: PNE are broke"
 
Staffordwhite said:
Ian Ashbee - that's our 'One' I reckon...
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Wouldn't surprise me. Personally I think the Iwelumo deal was a load of bollocks to make the board look more ambitious than they are. I mean, really, who on here didn't know we couldn't afford his wages?
 
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