Liam Lindsay has big boots and a big shirt to fill at Preston North End

The 25-year-old Scot is PNE’s replacement for Ben Davies who left Deepdale to join Liverpool in a £1.6m transfer.

Not only will Lindsay slot into Davies’ role in the centre of defence, he has taken his No.6 shirt too.

No pressure then for the centre-half who is set to make his North End debut against Rotherham at Deepdale on Saturday.

Lindsay said: “From what I have heard, Ben did brilliant things here and has got a dream move.

“I’ve got his shirt but it is just a number at the end of the day. I’ll wear it and hopefully do really well for this club.”

Lindsay hopes his move up the M6 from Stoke to Preston can kick-start a career which had stalled in the last 12 months.

He has not featured in a first-team game since the end of January last year, with him somewhat frozen out by the Potters.

It has not been a total deep freeze with him still having made the bench a handful of times.

However, the prospect of playing any time soon looked remote, hence when PNE showed their interest, Lindsay jumped at it.

He is a player North End manager Alex Neil knows well from Scotland, Lindsay having started his career at Patrick Thistle.

In 2017 he came south of the border to sign for Barnsley, helping them to win promotion from League One in May 2019.

A £2m move took him Stoke and having played 20 Championship games in the first half of the 2019/20 season, he has been out of the picture since.

“It’s been tough, really tough,” said Lindsay when reflecting on 2020. “I’m paid to play football and when you don’t play people from the outside who are looking in think you are happy to just take the money.

“Every footballer wants to play, though, and it’s been tough in that respect.

“In another way it has got the hunger back in that you want to play and perform well. I would rather look at it positively than negatively.

“Coming here I’m not going to be sat in the house watching the scores come in, I’m going to be involved and I want to make the most of that.”

Lindsay was one of three new arrivals at PNE on deadline day and eight overall in the window.

With eight players leaving, the North End squad has a much different look about it.

In a bid to help all the newcomers settle in, Neil organised an in-house 11-a-side game in training at Euxton on Tuesday.

Said Lindsay: “I trained on Monday at Stoke and then came up here to sign.

“On Tuesday morning we had an 11 v 11 which was really good. That was a chance for the lads who had come in to play and for the other lads and coaching staff to see what we were about.

“I feel ready to play on Saturday, I’ve trained all the time at Stoke and kept myself ticking over.

“It’s Rotherham we are playing and I was on the bench for Stoke when we played them a few weeks ago. So I know what they are all about and what we can expect. If I am involved it will be brilliant to be back out there again.”

There was a familiar face at Euxton for Lindsay when he reported in for training after his move.

The Glaswegian was a team-mate of Brad Potts at Barnsley and had been in communication with him ahead of the move.

“It makes things a lot easier when you already know someone at a new club,” said Lindsay.

“I knew Brad from Barnsley and he has been helping me settle in – all the lads have been helping, they are a welcoming bunch.

“I’ve got to admit that I wasn’t used to Brad with his long hair, I’m not sure what is going on there!

“I was used to him with a short back and sides at Barnsley, I don’t know if the long hair has something to do with the ‘Sons of Anarchy’.

“I kind of know Ryan Ledson here too because he is one of Pottsy’s best pals here.”

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