Ex-Hartlepool United striker opens up on his uncertain future, facing John Terry in front of 30,000 and how he's hoping to impress clubs to land new move

Now, over two years on and with football and the wider world gripped by uncertainty following the coronavirus pandemic, Simpson is facing an uncertain future with the striker expecting to be released by Preston this summer.

The determined 20-year-old, like every other footballer, has been training in isolation since all football was suspended in mid-March and he has been working hard as he prepares himself for the task of impressing clubs looking for a new striker in the weeks and months ahead.

Simpson’s contract is up in June and though no decisions have been officially made yet, he doesn’t think he will be offered a new deal, with Championship clubs set to return to small group training on Monday.

He said: “I don’t think I am in the plans.

“Preston are doing the testing for the virus [in preparation for the restart] and I am not in that group, so I am guessing I won’t be part of training.

“So, it looks like they’re not going to give me a new deal.”

The then-17-year-old signed for Preston North End in January 2018 for an undisclosed fee.

Simpson, who stands at 6ft 5ins, was offered a professional contract by Pools at the end of the previous year, but did not sign his first pro deal with club he joined at under-16 level.

He was handed the No 27 shirt at Deepdale by boss Alex Neil who described him as “certainly one for the future”.

However, his big move hasn’t quite worked out as intended with loan spells at Carlisle United and Accrington Stanley since.

The striker is living with his parents at their family home in Hartlepool and working hard on his skills to ensure he is in the best possible position to land a new club should that turn out to be the case, though Simpson will be one of hundreds of footballers looking for a new club this summer, with wages likely to be lower across the board with major changes on the way.

Simpson has been filming his lone sessions to see where he can improve.

Simpson told The Athletic: “The money will not be as high but I view it this way: as a young player wanting experience, it may give me a chance instead of taking on older guys with higher demands. It may work out OK. I have to be optimistic. Every day, I go for a run and then go to the field.

“I do a lot of fitness, speed and agility training, and a lot of finishing from different areas.

“I bought a ball machine that fires balls out to you at different speeds. You press the remote control and it acts as a player on the pitch. It crosses balls for me to head, or it does it on a timer. I can also replicate receiving the ball with my back to goal.

“I then watch back my videos and analyse what I can do better. I am doing runs, wearing weighted vests to spice it up a bit. I need to be ready for trials. I am a fighter.

“I came through at 17 at Hartlepool, they were struggling and needed to look at youth players. I washed my kit, cleaned my boots.

“There was no money there, so everything was off your own back. I got a lot of kicks early on in men’s football. They wanted to bully me and throw me about. I was only 17 and quite weak at the time. I had to fight for myself. The defenders in that league are quite mad and the refs are not watching as much.

“I got the move to Preston and this was mad; my first time on the bench was Villa away in front of 30,000.

“I had played in front of 4,000 at Hartlepool but it was surreal really against Villa, against John Terry. I want more of that.

“The level matters less to me but the main thing is playing games.

“There won’t be footage of me recently in action, so I want to show clubs I care, that I’m not sat at home doing nothing. I have to give myself a chance.”