Preston North End are likely to demand close to £10m for striker Emil Riis according to journalist Alan Nixon, as they look to generate as much money as possible for one of their prized assets.

As first revealed by Football League World this morning, Middlesbrough are interested in luring the Dane to the Riverside Stadium with Chris Wilder still wanting two more forwards to arrive before the summer window closes.

Already recruiting Marcus Forss and Matthew Hoppe, the latter is seen as one for the future and Josh Coburn arguably fits into that category too, though they do also have Chuba Akpom and Duncan Watmore at their disposal.

 

 

Akpom was reportedly deemed surplus to requirements earlier in the transfer window but after impressing Wilder, scoring twice on Sunday against Sheffield United, he has forced his way back into contention on Teesside and will remain at Boro beyond the summer.

As mentioned though, their work in the forward department is far from done and with the second-tier outfit seemingly struggling to get a deal over the line for Groningen's Jorgen Strand Larsen, FLW understands they have made an enquiry for 24-year-old Riis.

Following a poor start to life at Deepdale, he recorded 16 goals and five assists in 44 league appearances last term and with this, the Lilywhites are not prepared to let him go without receiving a sizeable fee.

The Verdict:

The 24-year-old still has plenty of room to grow and this is one reason why Boro may be targeting a potential deal for him - because they could potentially sell him on for a lot more in the future.

There's a clear theme developing here with Forss and Hoppe also likely to get much better in the future, so this could end up being another smart move from Preston if they can pull it off.

They certainly have the resources to if they don't manage to come to an agreement for Larsen, with Djed Spence and Marcus Tavernier's sales giving them plenty of money to play with.

Some of that money will surely be used to balance the books and ensure they remain within EFL limits - but a decent proportion of it is likely to be injected back into the first-team squad in their quest for promotion.

Looking at this potential deal from the player's perspective, it's not as if Riis would need to move too far if he was to make this switch, so he could thrive at the Riverside.

At this stage though, it remains to be seen whether he would prefer to bide his time at Preston and see if he can attract interest from Premier League sides in the future, because his side may also be in contention for promotion towards the latter stages of this season along with Boro.