Preston North End told January transfer priority to give manager and Leeds United loan star boost
January will be the manager’s first full transfer window at Preston North End
Preston North End must aim to strengthen their left side in the January transfer window.
That is the view of pundit and former Fleetwood Town and Doncaster Rovers coach, Steve Eyre, who watches plenty of PNE matches for BBC Radio Lancashire. One of those was North End’s last fixture, away to Sheffield Wednesday.
Manager Paul Heckingbottom made one signing in the summer, having arrived in late August. That was Josh Bowler, but the Nottingham Forest loan man’s game time has been limited. With Robbie Brady having been injured of late, PNE’s boss has turned to Kaine Kesler-Hayden and Brad Potts out wide.
Minutes have also been in short supply for fellow summer recruit, Jeppe Okkels - who was not in the squad at Hillsborough. With that the dynamic, Eyre thinks Preston have to try and bolster their options on the flanks.
"Yeah, I would get a left-footed, left-back or left winger," said Eyre. "I would get a genuine one there and then hopefully Brady is fit, so you have two players fighting for one shirt. I haven't really got any concern with Brad Potts ever playing in that position.
“Him and Kesler-Hayden could share that challenge on the other side. And, obviously, I think there has to be an emphasis now on the team scoring more goals. If you get a quality left winger, you probably see Sam Greenwood less on that left-wing perch.
“Although it was great, what he was doing there (at Sheffield Wednesday), it would allow him to be a forward and not have to go to the left wing to perform, because you haven't got one. Then, you can keep him in the box and hopefully, he can get some penalty area finishes like Will Keane does."
North End occupy 17th place ahead of the next round of midweek fixtures. Heckingbottom has overseen 17 of the 19 games played, with three wins, 10 draws and four defeats collected under his stewardship.
Only two teams in the Championship - Hull and Cardiff - have scored fewer goals than Preston. But, there have been positive signs in most performances and the obvious aim is to turn those into wins - on a more frequent basis.
Last season, the Lilywhites finished 10th - largely down to an incredible start to the season, which saw the team pick up 20 points from the first eight games. North End went on to collect 43 from the remaining 38 fixtures in 2023/24.
But, one trait PNE had last campaign was their clinical edge in the final third. Displays often failed to pass the eye test and underlying, attacking numbers were towards the bottom of the league. Chances tended to be taken though. This season is almost the exact opposite.
“Yeah, we have obviously championed the fact they were propelled in the first six weeks of the season with the wins, clean sheets and goals of Will Keane," said Eyre. "I do believe Keane will have a spell this season, where he will be a match winner - hopefully, on a few occasions.
“He obviously has to get back in the team first. I do look at the teams underneath them, and I don't follow them, but I don't see progress. I definitely saw enough in that performance last weekend, to suggest they have more than enough to get themselves up the table.
“The worry is, if it counts for anything at all, that there has notoriously been a drop-off in the second half of the season. If they get that, then that will be a concern. I think the supporters see a working class manager, with humility, who is doing his best with the players he's got at the moment.
“But, I think there would obviously be a message - hopefully shared by everybody - that the same players need to keep getting better and working hard, but it does need some assistance now, via fresh faces and new players. Hopefully, ones that come straight into the team and impact."