Steven Gerrard sends clear transfer message to Championship club over Aston Villa striker

Aston Villa manager Steven Gerrard has warned Preston North End it will cost them a lot of money to make striker Cameron Archer’s loan move permanent.

Archer joined Preston on loan from Villa until the end of season back in the January transfer window, and has gone on to become a big hit at Deepdale.

The 20-year-old has scored six goals in 14 games for Preston, including the winner in their derby victory over Blackpool on Tuesday night.

That has prompted North End boss Ryan Lowe to confirm that his side will try to sign Archer again for next season, if Villa themselves spend big in the transfer market.

Now however, it seems that a deal to bring the striker back to Lancashire for the 2022/23 campaign, will not be easy for Preston to complete.

Responding to those claims from Lowe about a fresh move for Archer, Gerrard was quoted by the Birmingham Mail as saying: “Ryan [Lowe] phoned me two days ago and asked for him back next season! I told him to tell Peter Ridsdale (Preston North End’s transfer advisor) to get his noughts out if he’s wanting him on a full-time basis!

“I also said that he won’t be available for a loan because the idea of the loan is to give him some experience to get him back in the group and to have a positive pre-season.

“Ryan’s done a good job with him. Preston have given him a really good opportunity, to be fair, but everyone wants Cam Archer and everyone wants Keinan Davis! Good players cost an awful lot of money and you know that, don’t ya!”

Prior to his move to Preston, Archer had made six first-team appearances for Villa, scoring four goals, including a hat-trick in a League Cup win over Barrow earlier this season.

As things stand, there are just over three years remaining on Archer’s contract