Liam Millar shares 'honest' talks with Preston North End before 2024 transfer to Hull City
The former loan star came back to haunt his old club in midweek
Liam Millar didn’t feel it appropriate to celebrate his goal against old club Preston North End on Tuesday night.
The Canadian broke the deadlock in Hull City’s dominant 0-3 win at Deepdale. Millar finished off a Tigers counter-attack from a PNE corner, with the home side’s defence non-existent - allowing Millar a simple, first time finish.
It was his first return to Preston since a 2023/24 loan spell which saw Millar score five goals and assist the same number for the Lilywhites. After slotting home the opener, the tricky winger held his hands up to the home faithful and kept celebrations muted.
“Yeah you know, I had a lot of good memories here, a lot of good times here,” Millar told the Lancashire Post. “The club helped me a lot through a really difficult time in my career where I wasn't playing and kind of had to restart my career, and reinvent myself in a way.
“Ryan (Lowe) and the guys here at the club gave me that opportunity to showcase myself and I'll forever be grateful for that. So, I felt like it wasn't right for me to celebrate tonight and that's why I didn't.”
Millar was a bright spark in a PNE shirt and there were hopes among North End fans that he could return on a permanent basis. However, a reported £3million transfer to the Tigers went through. The Canadian did speak to former Preston boss Ryan Lowe in the summer of 2024 but his head told him to look elsewhere.
“Yeah, Ryan called me and whatnot,” said Millar. “And, you know, I was very, very honest with him. I said like, ‘Look, I loved it here, I had a really good time but, you know, I don't want to play wing back. That's not what I want to do.’ He was more than understanding. He got it, he understood, so it was no problem.”
Millar wishes PNE well
”Yeah, like I always follow the scores,” said Millar. “I always obviously want to see them do well. I've got a lot of friends here still, from the guys that I've played with and, you know, I'm always wishing everyone here the best.”