Coutts stripped of captaincy

Preston manager Graham Westley has stripped midfielder Paul Coutts of the club's captaincy.

Westley convinced Coutts not to hand in a transfer request ahead of his first game in charge at North End last month, but the midfielder's attitude has deeply displeased the former Stevenage boss and the 23-year-old has been sent away from the squad to contemplate his future as he begins a two-match suspension this weekend. "I've been very disappointed in Couttsy since I've been here," said Westley. "He was the captain of this football club and I shouldn't have been there on a Friday night having a conversation with him about whether he was going to put in a transfer request or not. "I've told him this week that I'm going to take the captaincy away from him and let him concentrate on his playing duties. I think there's too much nonsense goes on nowadays and we've got to nip it in the bud at this football club. "He's got to get his mind round the job that he's got to do. He's got wonderful talent, I'm looking forward to working with him and I hope I can get the best out of him. I hope he's prepared to knuckle down and get on with things in a constructive way for the good of the football team." Westley is yet to select Coutts' successor ahead of Saturday's visit of Brentford, and he added: "I've sent him away for a couple of days. I've said to him, 'Get out of the club, go and spend some time on your own and get your head together. When you walk back in the door you tell me that you can play whole-heatedly for this football club, because until you do I don't want you around the place.'"