Graham Barrett's agent has been accused of pricing him out of a permanent move to Preston.

The Argus revealed yesterday that Albion's on-loan Arsenal striker had turned Preston down.

The Gunners accepted their bid but Barrett, offered a three-and-a-half year contract, failed to agree personal terms.

Angry Preston chairman Derek Shaw has blamed the Republic of Ireland international's agent for the collapse of the deal.

Shaw said last night: "Graham wanted to think this one over for footballing reasons.

"The agent came back to our finance director yesterday and said that Graham was prepared to join Preston, but in the end the demands from the agent were just too great for us.

"We had given him an indication of what we were prepared to pay, but they are looking for a lot more and the agent's fees were just too excessive. We are not having a gun to our head.

"When you are spending hundreds of thousands of pounds, probably in excess of a million with wages and other things, you cannot be rushed into doing a deal.

"They can try and put pressure on us if they want and maybe this guy thought he had put us under pressure, but we won't accept that.

"He has a young client who Arsenal do not want. They have agreed to sell him. It now looks like he might spend the rest of the season with Brighton and where may he crop up after that?"

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