'A player's manager' - Preston North End get exciting expert lowdown on Paul Heckingbottom

Paul Heckingbottom is the new manager of Preston North End - back in a league he earned promotion from, the last time he was in it.

The 47-year-old’s appointment was confirmed on Tuesday morning, eight days after the sudden exit of Ryan Lowe. Heckingbottom takes charge of his first match this Saturday, at home to Luton Town. His immediate aim is to get North End back on track, and then take them to the next level.

He arrives with success at the level under his belt, and one man who followed his Sheffield United story is ex-Blades reporter, Nathan Hemmingham. Here, he gives the Lancashire Post the lowdown on the new man in the Deepdale dugout.

What are Heckingbottom's main strengths as a manager?

NH: He is a player’s manager. You will do well to find a player with a bad word to say about him. A good coach as well, who develops players and is not afraid to give youth a chance. The number of youngsters who were handed debuts when he was under 23 coach and then first team coach was in double figures. He was a key factor behind Iliman Ndiaye’s rise to prominence.

Although Ndiaye had already broken into the first team at the time of Heckingbottom’s appointment, the Senegalese really shone under his former coach - who took him to another level. He became a star player, with the team built around him. Heckingbottom is a very intelligent manager, having been a student of the game after retiring from playing. He spent time studying other clubs, in particular Borussia Dortmund and Atletico Madrid. He knows what he wants and how a club needs to operate from top to bottom.

How would you describe the style of his team? And is he adaptable?

NH: He was very much a front-foot, attacking manager during his time at United - but he had to be. That’s how the team was set up and that’s the football the fans want to see. That wasn’t the case when he took over, the football was dire under the previous manager - but he quickly recognised the need to return to the team’s main strengths. The team was built around a 3-5-2/3-4-3 formation, so there was little room for manoeuvre if he wanted to change away from that.

He rightly stuck with it, but added his own tweaks - mainly about pressing high up and quick transition into attack when winning the ball back. They had the best squad in the division alongside Burnley, but that counts for nothing - as we saw under Slavisa Jokanovic - if you don’t use it right. Heckingbottom certainly did and they were comfortably promoted. His points record was incredible.

What were some of the challenges he faced or areas he could’ve improved?

NH: In terms of challenges, he was not short of those. He was appointed at a time when the club was experiencing cash flow issues off the back of relegation. He had his budget cut every year, there was a transfer embargo, off-the-field unrest with a failed takeover, but it was to his credit how he handled that, especially in the media. In terms of areas to improve, it’s a difficult one because, as you can imagine, United were 17th at the time of his appointment, finished fourth that season and then second the season after - earning promotion and reaching the FA Cup semi-final.

They disposed of Spurs along the way, so there was very little wrong in the Championship. In the Premier League he was dealt an incredibly bad hand, with his two star players sold on the eve of the season and a transfer kitty that would do nothing in that division. The white flag had been waved before a ball had been kicked and he had the rug pulled from under him. That said, there is an argument, as bad as the hand was, he didn’t play it very well.

The little money that he did have wasn’t spent well enough, with the majority of signings poor. United just couldn’t lay a glove on the opposition. He has a saying ‘to score the next goal’, which in the Championship with a strong attacking team that often worked, but in the Premier League under Paul they were too open and too soft at the back. To be fair to him, even after the change of manager, results didn’t improve - which spoke more about the gulf in class than any particular fault from the manager. He could have used the money better, and could have been tighter defensively in such a punishing league - but in truth, the outcome would still have been the same (relegation). It just might not have been as emphatic.

Was he good in the media?

NH: You will like working with him. He was one of the best managers I have ever worked with in my career spanning 25 years. I enjoyed his company. He is very articulate and speaks well and was very good with the locals. One thing that stands out to me was how well he spoke about the club. He’s a club man, made countless decisions where he put the club first and not himself, making decisions for the future that would benefit other managers - when he wouldn’t see the results of that.

One example is using his budget for a new training pitch, rather than spend it on an extra player, which other managers I am sure would have. He never spoke ill of the club and kept all matters behind closed doors - even though he would have loved to have said a lot more about the challenges he was experiencing. Heckingbottom will not hang any dirty laundry out in public, have any rants or criticise.

Is he a good appointment for Preston?

PH: Absolutely. Fans should warm to him. Stuart McCall is as good as an assistant manager as you will find and the pair work really well together. He likes to play attacking football, always goes for the win and I expect this to be a good appointment. Good luck. I wish him, Stuart and Preston all the best and hope they do well.