Alex Neil is unlikely to leave Preston to join West Brom right now with North End firmly in the hunt for a top six finish.

That's according to journalist Alan Nixon, who simply replied 'no' when asked if the Scotsman could join the Baggies to succeed Darren Moore.

Albion are believed to have identified Neil as a leading candidate after his fine work at Deepdale, whilst he has also won promotion from the Championship before with Norwich.

Former Fulham boss Slavisa Jokanovic is another who has been suggested as an option but coach James Shan has been in charge as a caretaker and has helped Albion to successive wins.

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Meanwhile, Preston are one of the in-form sides in the country right now and a late, late winner against Birmingham on Saturday saw the team jump to seventh in the race for the play-offs.

Therefore, with eight games to go it would be a bold decision to move to The Hawthorns, although West Brom seem nailed on for a play-off place after these back-to-back wins.

The Verdict

You have to agree with what Nixon says here, it would be extremely surprising for Neil to jump ship now after all the excellent work he has done at Preston.

Given that, if he is the one Albion want then they would be best appointing a short-term replacement for Moore and moving for Neil in the summer when a move to the West Midlands would surely appeal.

But, that's a brave move considering it was extremely harsh to sack Moore and it will be interesting to see how this plays out.

Thoughts? Let us know in the comments below.