Preston North End tranfer rumours: Lilywhites step up chase for international winger, Birmingham City linked with big-money striker

Speaking ahead of the must-win game, Lilywhites left-back Josh Earl revealed: “I have a good relationship with the manager. The conversations that I had with him over the summer were basically me telling him that I was going to come back as the 'old Josh Earl'.

“I told him that I was going to come back fighting for him and be in good shape. I am definitely mentally stronger than I was when I first broke into the team. It is tough coming in as a young lad. I think I am still a similar player but I’ve gained a little bit more experience and I feel a little bit tougher mentally.”

He continued: “I have had to wait a little while for a chance and that has been down to players in my position playing really well. There’s been other factors too so I was really pleased to get back in the side and hopefully I can nail down that spot.

“The loan spell at Burton did not go as well as I would have liked, I did not play as many games as I would have wanted to. But I made sure I worked hard over the summer and came back in decent nick.”

Take a look at the latest news round-up from the Championship, as the window moves closer to its final week: