Football Season Guide

Preston North End

In


Freddie Woodman (gk) Newcastle United; David Cornell (gk) Peterborough United; Robbie Brady (mid) Bournemouth; Ben Woodburn (att) Liverpool; Jack Baxter (mid) Radcliffe - end of loan; Jamie Thomas (att) Halifax Town - end of loan; Josh Harrop (mid) Fleetwood Town - end of loan; Tom Bayliss (mid) Wigan Athletic - end of loan; Jordan Storey (def) Sheffield Wednesday - end of loan;

Out


Cameron Archer (att) (r) Aston Villa - end of loan; Tom Barkhuizen (mid) (sp) Derby County; Josh Earl (def) (r) Fleetwood Town; Tom Bayliss (mid) Shrewsbury Town; Joe Rafferty (def) (sp) Portsmouth; Connor Ripley (gk) (sp) Morecambe; Jack Baxter (mid) Stafford Rangers; Ethan Walker (att) Blackburn Rovers; Izzy Brown (mid) Released; Scott Sinclair (mid) (sp) Released; Paul Huntington (def) Released; Matthew Hudson (gk) Released; Jamie Thomas (att) Released; Josh Murphy (mid) (sp) Cardiff City - end of loan; Daniel Iversen (gk) (r) Leicester City - end of loan; Sepp van den Berg (def) (r) Liverpool - end of loan;

After starting last season slowly, Preston fans turned on manager Frankie McAvoy, who was sacked and replaced by Plymouth Argyle boss Ryan Lowe in December. Lowe instilled an entertaining possession-based style and improved results overall, but Preston remained inconsistent in parts and finished 13th. A lot of fringe players have been cleared out by Lowe in the summer so far, whilst important players Iversen, Van den Berg and Archer have all exited Deepdale upon the end of their loan spells. Lowe remains keen to bring either Archer or Callum Robinson back to the club in order to provide some much needed support for Emil Riis up front - last season's top goalscorer by some distance. Woodman and Brady are impressive acquisitions for this level, but Preston are yet to replace Van den Berg or Archer and remain short of options in the wing-back areas - which are key in Lowe's preferred 3-5-2 setup. In Browne, Whiteman, Ledson, McCann and Johnson, Preston boast an excellent central midfield, as well as a quality striker at this level in the form of Riis, whilst possessing an exciting young manager with an attractive philosophy. However, Lowe could struggle to implement his style without some desperately required additions - in attack and in the wing-back areas.

Target


Preston will be aiming for a top-half finish in their first full season under Lowe, and could potentially sneak into contention for the playoffs should they complete some shrewd business in the remaining few weeks of the transfer window.