The Preston North End man has impressed in his last two appearances

Preston North End manager Paul Heckingbottom has hailed the recent contribution of Andrija Vukcevic.

The Montenegro international was one of the most unpredictable summer transfer recruits, but after a trial week in Spain he returned to Euxton and landed a contract with the Lilywhites.

He has, so far this season, featured predominantly as a substitute but consecutive starts against Hull City and Charlton yielded eye-catching performances. The PNE boss has been pleased to see his number three showcase his talent.

“Yeah, I think anyone who saw him when he came in, he was desperate to come and play in England,” said Heckingbottom. “He really wanted to. When he got the opportunity to come to us, and it was through his agent, he came in on trial, performed, settled in well.

“I think everyone's seeing what we saw when we took him, and what he can bring. Listen, no players are complete and I've always said bringing players in, what's your outstanding quality? What are you going to bring to our team? I think you can see that today.”

The signing of Vukcevic may have raised eyebrows given the fact it was agent led; the defender is represented by the same agent as Milutin Osmajic. The 28-year-old was also given a three-year deal. Heckingbottom, though, went into the whole situation open-minded and instantly saw what the full-back could offer him.

“Yeah, we had to be,” said Heckingbottom. “We had no money. Our money was tied up in the squad and we had to be brave, but really emotionless in decision-making to just free up as much money as possible, to try and change things for the positive.

“Then you've got to be skilled in doing that with the players you're targeting, with their attributes in the squad. And, I've said it many a time, don't be worried about everything else. If our market is different, our market is different - but let us be the best in that market. That was another one of those examples.”

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