Preston North End star named in Championship Team of the Week after excellent Southampton display
Graham Alexander won his first game as PNE boss on Saturday.
Lee Nicholls has been named in the Championship's official Team of the Week after his fantastic performance against Southampton.
Preston North End won their first game in over two months and their first under new manager Graham Alexander on Saturday, defeating promotion hopefuls Southampton 1-0.
Jordan Thompson's thunderbolt volley was all that separated the two sides in the end, with Preston having to dig deep to hold off the Saints onslaught in the second half.
While the defence remained resolute, for the most part, Southampton did manage to get some of their 23 shots on target but, every time, Nicholls was there to prevent the ball from going in.
Most of his saves were fairly comfortable but his no-nonsense work brought a sense of assurance to the side, and there was one brilliant stop to tip a powerful shot from distance wide.
What made the performance all the more impressive is that it was Nicholls' first league start for North End, and his first game since August.
The 34-year-old shot-stopper won Player of the Match at Deepdale and registered a statistical rating of 8.55 from WhoScored.com, earning him a place in the Championship Team of the Week for his outstanding efforts.
EFL explain Lee Nicholls inclusion in Championship Team of the Week
The EFL's official website said: "Lee Nicholls made eight saves in Preston’s 1-0 win over Southampton, the most of any goalkeeper in the Championship this weekend.
"Five of those came from inside the box, the second-most of the round and one behind Swansea’s Lawrence Vigouroux.
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"It was his league debut, with Graham Alexander dropping the out-of-form Daniel Iversen. Southampton finished with 89 per cent possession and 20 shots, yet were limited to two big chances, and Nicholls dealt with everything on target, including a one-handed stop from Wellington.
"He also added two clearances and won two aerial duels, which shows how comfortably he handled the crosses Southampton kept sending in."With this result, Preston ended a torrid run of having gone 273 days without a clean sheet."
The full team reads: Nicholls (PNE), Pereira (WBA), McConville (Norwich), Darling (Norwich), Robinson (Derby); Alli (Charlton), Molomby (WBA), Rodrigues (Bolton), Price (WBA), Stansfield (Birmingham), Morris (Derby).