Championship clubs eyeing in-demand midfielder as Hull City eye deals

Alan Browne looks set to leave Preston North End after a decade at Deepdale and his likely intention to move on has put a host of Championship clubs on red alert.

A flurry of Hull City's rivals are keeping tabs on the 29-year-old who has played more than 400 times for the Lillywhites, scoring 46 goals from central midfield with his form consistently seeing him linked with moves to bigger clubs.

North End have offered him the biggest contract in the club's history in a bid to keep the Republic of Ireland international in Lancashire, but with no sign of Browne signing the contract on offer from Preston at this stage, his future looks to be elsewhere.

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Both Sheffield United and Coventry City have been linked with moves for the free agent, while a move to Italian outfit Salernitana in the January transfer window fell through, and there are likely to be further clubs keeping an eye on the situation for a player who played 41 times last term, scoring four and picking up four assists.

“I would love to know, wouldn’t I? I am the manager of the football club. I need to know if I am with him or without him, or whether I can use his money or not. I am the same as everyone else," manager Ryan Lowe said when asked if Browne would be a Preston player next term.

“Unfortunately, these are the questions for Alan Browne, not me. But, I am sure, at some point, he’s got a deadline and once that comes we’ll hopefully know.

“What I will say is that Browney has been offered a contract that, in the club’s history, is the best you can offer anyone. I can say that on record. We have to respect Alan’s decision, whatever that may be."