Preston North End are set to finalise the loan signing of Aston Villa forward Cameron Archer in the coming days, according to Birmingham Live journalist Ashley Preece.
The 20-year-old had been the subject of interest from clubs both in the Championship and League One were monitoring his situation after impressing in the Premier League side's youth setup, although his rise to prominence came in August's Carabao Cup tie against Barrow when he scored a wonderful hat-trick.
As per a report from the Daily Mail earlier this month, Preston, Derby County, Sunderland, Portsmouth, Sheffield Wednesday, Charlton Athletic and Lincoln City were all interested in pursuing his signature.
The same outlet also stated that Villa manager Steven Gerrard wanted to retain the young forward to utilise in his first team, having included him in several of his matchday squads in the top tier this term.
However, he has seemingly had a chance of heart, with Archer missing his current side's matchday squad for this afternoon's 1-0 victory at Everton as he travels to Lancashire to complete his loan move.
As per journalist Preece, he now looks set to finalise this temporary transfer to Deepdale in the next few days, looking set to become Ryan Lowe's first signing at the second-tier side, provinding some attacking cover for North End after the expiration of Connor Wickham's contract.
The Verdict:
Considering Wickham rarely appeared for the Lilywhites, any forward coming in now would be a good replacement but in Archer, they have a man who already has top-flight experience under his belt and a point to prove as well.
He's already had a taste of senior football in the West Midlands, so there will be no shortage of motivation for him to prove he's ready to take the step up more regularly.
At 20, he's still reasonably young and doesn't turn 21 until December, but it's getting to a crucial stage in his career where it's now or never for the forward if he wants to assert himself as a regular squad member for Gerrard's men.
On a big stage at Preston, he has the perfect chance to do this and will be hoping to assert himself as one of the first names on the teamsheet under manager Lowe, although he will face considering competition with the likes of Emil Riis and Ched Evans as other options.
This could help to maximise his performance levels though, so he's definitely one to keep an eye on if he does end up completing a move to the Lilywhites, a team who look to be on the up under a talented boss.