Charlie Kelman features: 4 strikers Preston North End could consider signing ahead of July 1st | OneFootball

Preston North End have already had a very successful transfer window thus far, but their next signing must be a striker.

Preston North End have already had a very successful transfer window thus far. There were some seismic departures for the club to deal with following the release of the club’s retained list, including Emil Riis, Freddie Woodman and Ryan Ledson.

However, Paul Heckingbottom has countered these exits masterfully with the arrivals of midfielder Jordan Thompson from Stoke, goalkeeper Daniel Iversen from Leicester, and full-back duo Pol Valentin and Thierry Small, from Sheffield Wednesday and Charlton, respectively.

All of these imports have signed on at Deepdale for free, but there is still one pressing issue with squad depth that PNE must address – their lack of options up top.

With Riis, Leeds loanee Sam Greenwood and former Liverpool man Layton Stewart all leaving this summer, North End’s list of forwards now reads as follows – the controversial Milutin Osmajic, the aging and injury-prone Will Keane, and player-coach Ched Evans.

If Preston want to improve on their 20th-placed league finish from last season, they will need more firepower than this. As such, Heckingbottom’s next move must be to bring in a player to bolster the club’s attack, and there are a few names that he and the PNE board should be turning their attention to.

Callum Robinson

This is a player that Preston fans already know all about. Robinson is a proven striker at Championship level, and he cut his teeth at Deepdale before venturing elsewhere.

Across three separate loan spells, and then a three-year stint as a contracted professional at PNE, “Robbo” notched 41 goals and 21 assists in 160 appearances. He last left the club in 2019, departing for Sheffield United for a reported £8m fee, per LancsLive.

Nowadays, the 30-year-old has just completed his third season with Cardiff City, which has seen the Bluebirds finish bottom of the table. Robinson scored 12 league goals this season, and has already been tipped by FLW’s Cardiff fan pundit Matt Hall to depart the club, potentially to Preston, as they drop a division.

The Republic of Ireland international signed a two-year contract extension on his current deal in January, which means that his services wouldn’t be free if PNE were to take an interest. However, as was again speculated by FLW’s fan pundit Matt Hall, Cardiff may be more open to his sale than they once were, given the impact of January signing Yousef Salech.

It’s a deal that everyone involved would almost certainly welcome. Few Preston fans have a bad word to say about Robinson. The player himself would probably be keen to continue his career in the Championship, and his record of 97 goal contributions in 272 games at this level speaks for itself.

Charlie Kelman

This young man set League One ablaze in 2024/25. On loan at Leyton Orient from PNE’s Championship rivals QPR, the 23-year-old managed 23 goals, including two during the O’s failed play-off campaign, as well as five assists to help his temporary side to a sixth-placed finish in the table, and an appearance at Wembley.

This most recent campaign was his breakout one. Before this, he’d previously managed 13 goal contributions from 65 games for the likes of Wigan Athletic, Gillingham and Southend United in the English third tier. In the Championship, however, Kelman has yet to register a goal from 23 sporadic appearances across five years at QPR, in between loan spells away from Loftus Road.

Remarkably, despite his successes going forward at Brisbane Road last time out, an exit for the forward may be in the works. The R’s will be expecting Zan Celar to be back to full fitness ahead of the new campaign, and they have also offered a new deal to Michael Frey, meaning Kelman won’t be guaranteed minutes.

With that considered, a source has told FLW that up to eight unnamed Championship clubs are monitoring the player’s current situation. In addition, FLW’s QPR fan pundit Louis Moir has admitted that he wouldn’t be surprised if Kelman pushed for a permanent exit.

Whether or not PNE are one of those teams is unknown, but they should be – he is young, hungry to prove himself at Championship level, and has been improving year-on-year in League One. Given Preston’s current lack of depth up front, a chance for him to shine at Deepdale would be near guaranteed.

Chido Obi

This would arguably be the biggest risk for Preston to take, but if it paid off, it would do so in a very big way. Chido Obi is just 17 years old, but he has already made one start and six substitute appearances for Manchester United in the Premier League last season. Ruben Amorim gave the teenager a chance, whilst also telling him to “be humble and keep working hard every day”, the youngster said to United Media.

Perhaps that chance came from his stellar form for United in various youth competitions. Standing at 6’2", he is an imposing presence in any forward line, and a prolific goal-getter. Across 14 games in the U18 Premier League, Premier League 2, and the FA Youth Cup last season, Obi bagged 14 goals and two assists.

With Manchester United having already signed Matheus Cunha from Wolves this summer, as well as targeting both Brentford’s Bryan Mbeumo and Sporting CP’s Viktor Gyokeres, there would be little room for Obi to continue to hone his craft for the club. He would likely be sent out on loan to get game time, and Preston could be a good place for the young Dane to do just that.

Preston’s recent squad history is littered with imports from Manchester United, both on loan and permanently. Current forward Keane’s first PNE stint came as a loanee from United, and goalkeeper Sam Johnstone became a play-off hero for the club in 2015, earning promotion from League One during his temporary stay at Deepdale from Old Trafford.

Even big names like Danny Welbeck and soon-to-be "Sir" David Beckham have worn Lilywhites colors during loan spells from United in the past. Whilst it’s impossible to compare Chido Obi to those names right now, it may be possible to do so in five or ten years, and PNE could be a part of that.

Luca Kjerrumgaard

This is the left-field choice, but it would follow a recent North End trend of imports from in and around Scandinavia. The club had four players on their books throughout last season with experience in the Danish Superliga, and this final transfer suggestion comes from the same place as midfielder Mads Frokjaer-Jensen.

Odense Boldklub, or OB, spent the 2024/25 season in Denmark in the NordicBet Liga (second tier). They have bounced back to the Superliga at the first time of asking, as champions of the division no less, and a key part of that achievement has been Luca Kjerrumgaard.

The 22-year-old, who has represented Denmark at youth level, was the Danish second tier’s top scorer outright in 2024/25. He notched 22 goals in 28 games across the regular season, and during the club’s separate promotion campaign. He also managed seven assists during that time.

At 6’3", Kjerrumgaard has been described as a clinical finisher with his feet and head. His strong presence and imposing frame could greatly benefit some of Preston’s quicker and more direct players – Osmajic, Small, Brad Potts - who he’d be able to knock the ball down to.

Whilst a move from the Danish second division to the English second division would include a jump in quality, this young forward has previously demonstrated his will to prove himself at a certain level. For example, he greatly impressed on loan to Nykøbing FC from OB in 2022/23, scoring 13 and assisting two in 28 games.

Whilst Kjerrumgaard would almost certainly be the least inspiring signing for North End to make from the names on this list, he would almost certainly come cheap from the NordicBet Liga. He would also be welcomed warmly by the Scandinavian contingent within the club, and may have the potential to be the biggest surprise package PNE have had in recent years.