All the headlines from Alex Neil's press conference ahead of Preston North End hosting Brentford

Preston boss Alex Neil spoke to the media on Monday morning ahead of North End hosting Brentford at Deepdale on Wednesday night.
Alex Neil speaks to the media at Springfields on Monday morningAlex Neil speaks to the media at Springfields on Monday morning
Alex Neil speaks to the media at Springfields on Monday morning

The PNE manager reflected on the draw at Hull, gave an update on injuries and looked ahead to back-to-back home games.

Below are the main headlines...

Ben Pearson returning from suspension...

It would be nice to keep him suspension free. That’s something he needs to really focus on between now and the end of the season because he’s such a good performer for us. It will be a welcome boost for everyone to have him back.

Late point at Hull...

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If feels as if you’ve snatched something from the jaws of defeat. Comparing it to Aston Villa where it felt like a defeat, football is a funny game because you get the same outcome but it feels so very different. I think that’s why we all love it, the emotions of football.

Improving form and looking to kick on...

In our last two away games we picked up two points, last home game we picked up three points. In the last three or four matches we’ve shown some positive signs. We’ve got to try and target these two games and really try and get as many points as we can from them.

Brentford's change of manager...

The coach was already there. It’s not as if it’s a fresh face walking in the building. The consistency and familiarity is still there. I think it will just be business as usual for them.

Brentford's style of play...

They’ve got a good brand of football in how they play and we’re going to have to be at our very best to match them. They’ve got good technical players as well as having good legs and being dynamic.

Sean Maguire starting against Hull...

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Last year I thought we managed Seani’s return really well because we had the luxury of being able to do that. I wouldn’t say I was forced to play him on Saturday but when Tom Barkhuizen and Callum Robinson were out I thought he was the best alternative to play in that game.

Competition...

There’s very little between a lot of the players and it’s very difficult to decide what your best XI is. What you tend to do is if you pick one player because he’s slightly better at one thing but then you’re taking away from something else. Through illness, injuries and suspensions we’ve been trying to find some consistency. We need to try and get an element of that back.

Potential returns for Barkhuizen and Clarke...

I hope so. We’ve got two training days between now and the game and we’ll see how they come through that.