Blackburn Rovers boss and ex-Birmingham City man reportedly on Preston North End manager shortlist

Preston North End’s managerial shortlist reportedly features former boss Alex Neil and current Blackburn Rovers chief John Eustace.

That is according to Sky Sports reporter Rob Dorsett, who suggests that Gary Rowett, Paul Gallagher, Brian Barry-Murphy and Scott Lindsey are also viewed as candidates by North End. Neil, Gallagher, Barry-Murphy and Rowett are currently out of work, with Lindsey in charge of League One club Crawley Town - whom he guided to promotion last season, via the play-offs.

Ryan Lowe’s departure from Preston, after two-and-a-half years but just one game of the 2024/25 campaign, was confirmed on Monday morning. North End have an interim management team of Mike Marsh, Peter Murphy and Ched Evans in place for this week.

Former PNE player and coach, Gallagher, left his coaching role at Stoke City this summer - having stayed on following Neil’s dismissal in December 2023. Gallagher has attended North End’s first two matches of the season, while it is believed Neil would be open to talks about a return.

As for Barry-Murphy, his only stint as a number one came at Rochdale, between 2019 and 2021. After that, he coached Manchester City’s Elite Development Squad for three years - before leaving last month. Ex-Stoke and Derby County boss Rowett returned to Birmingham City last season for an interim spell in charge, due to Tony Mowbray’s illness.

The shock name to emerge is Eustace, who was appointed manager of Lancashire rivals Rovers, back in February. He put pen-to-paper on a two-and-a-half year deal and ensured Blackburn stayed in the Championship last season.