The teenager will return to the Championship, where he enjoyed success on loan with Derby County last season
Harrison Armstrong in action as Everton and AFC Bournemouth meet at MetLife Stadium, New Jersey. Photo by Roger Wimmer/ISI Photos/ISI Photos via Getty Images
Harrison Armstrong has sealed a transfer deadline day switch to Preston North End.
The central midfielder has been coveted by Championship clubs throughout the summer after he impressed with Derby County during the second half of last season. Now he is set for a stint on loan at Deepdale, where Paul Heckingbottom’s side have enjoyed a positive start to the campaign.
The 18-year-old has been involved in David Moyes’ plans since recovering from a minor injury suffered at the end of pre-season but the Blues boss was keen to find him a move where he could land consistent first team football.
READ MORE: Everton transfer deadline day updates on Merlin Rohl, Harrison Armstrong and Nathan PattersonREAD MORE: Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall reveals role in Jack Grealish Everton transfer and why they both signed
Moyes believes Armstrong is a player of potential and stressed last week that he would have been happy to keep him with his squad this season. But there was a fine line between helping him to develop and holding him back, he said, and a move was always likely to be sanctioned if Everton could secure another midfielder before the end of the window.
That now looks set to happen with the club attempting to finalise a deal for Merlin Rohl from Freiburg.
Armstrong earned the man-of-the-match accolade in the Blues’ Carabao Cup win over Mansfield Town last week – a game he started after coming on as a late substitute days earlier in the club’s first competitive game at Hill Dickinson Stadium, the 2-0 Premier League win over Brighton. He has also been called up for the England Under-19s squad for the coming international break.