”Really disappointed with the club” - Preston North End's £6m Alfie Devine deal expires | OneFootball

The door is wide open for another team to pounce on the Tottenham midfielder

A major transfer concern has been raised at Preston North End over Alfie Devine’s situation.

This comes after the Championship side's exclusivity to complete a club-record deal of around £6m for the Tottenham midfielder expired on June 30th.

It is understood to have been the player, rather than the club, who kept North End waiting though, with Alan Nixon claiming that it was Devine himself who had not agreed to sign.

Even still, a familiar voice is now "really disappointed" that the door has been left open for another team to make their move for the 21‑year‑old - and potentially give Spurs more money.

Preston North End slammed for Alfie Devine transfer situation

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When asked for his view on the Devine situation - and whether Preston may spend that money elsewhere - FLW’s North End Fan Pundit, Darren Watson, was very clear.

"I'm really, really disappointed with the club. They've had so many months to try and get this deal over the line and agree personal terms with the player," he told FLW.

"Obviously, we don't know what's going on behind the scenes with everything to do with the takeover, which is another concern as well, because it's just over a month now until the season starts and we really do need to get this shifted on.

"I'm really worried because another team with a bigger wage budget and a bit of ambition, you know maybe their owners have got their heads screwed on, can now get Alfie Devine and pay Tottenham even more money.

"It's really poor on our behalf now and I'm really worried because they made him the poster boy - we could've made a team around him - and we could've had a chance at fighting for something next season."

The aforementioned Nixon had warned that if North End could not get the deal done before the deadline, Celtic could enter the race, and reports have since indicated Devine is on the Scottish champions' shortlist, with the player's agents said to hold "strong links" to both Celtic and Tottenham, as reported by 67 Hail Hail.

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For Watson, the fear is not simply losing Devine, but what the failure to land him says about the direction of his club.

The Fan Pundit added, "Now, are we going to spend that little bit of money we were going to give Tottenham over a certain amount of seasons on somebody else? Again, probably not. Because I know what this current ownership is like, and I know what will happen.

"We’ll end up getting a loan player in and rinse and repeat like every single season. I don’t really want to sound negative about my own club, I absolutely love this club, it will be the death of me one day, but again, the current ownership and the way that it’s run - the communication is absolutely terrible to the fans.

So far, Preston's only summer addition has been 33-year-old backup goalkeeper Lee Nicholls, who joined on a two-year deal from Huddersfield Town on July 1st.

"I understand they can’t say things just for the sake of it, but there’s been no communication from the end of the season about players, direction of the club, and season review from Peter Risdale like he always has done," Watson concluded.

Clearly, the proposed Devine deal would’ve lifted the whole Preston fanbase ahead of 26/27. Yet, like Watson's disappointment, plenty of other North End fans have made their feelings known across social media.

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Taking to X, one Preston fan claimed the club's ownership 'couldn't have done more' to get Devine to sign permanently.

Another thinks the 21-year-old will pick 'money over game time' at Celtic, and has told others to stop wanting him to go back to Deepdale.

Someone even shared the midfielder's instagram story, and said it was 'fun whilst it lasted'.

Yet, like Watson, a separate North End fan has also raised the issue of whether the club will still use the Devine money.