After a four year spell in Lancashire with Preston North End, Simon Grayson will vacate the dugout at Deepdale having agreed to take over at recently relegated Sunderland.

Losing Grayson will be disappointing to those associated with the club, who have made outstanding progress under the former Leeds gaffer in the four years he has been at the club.

Reports suggest that Preston are close to appointing former Norwich City boss Alex Neil to the role, in a deal that could be confirmed in the next few days.

If Neil does put pen to paper, he may consider swoops for some of his former men at Carrow Road, who would surely be keen to link up with their former gaffer once again.

One man who could not refuse a move to the north west is Cameroonian international Sebastien Bassong, who is on the lookout for a new club having been released by the Canaries after five years in East Anglia.

Bassong has bizarrely spent his time this summer as a headline DJ at a London event, but must now turn his attentions to his day job ahead of the new season which kicks off in a month’s time.

Neil will look to bolster a Lilywhites back line which conceded 63 goals last season, and the experienced Bassong could be a welcome addition to the club.

Preston already have a solid defensive core which includes Greg Cunningham and Tom Clarke, but adding Bassong to the mix would solidify the depth of the unit.

Neil looks certain to get the job at this point in time, and bringing Bassong in on a short term deal would be a great start to the Scot’s summer transfer business at his new club.