Preston North End’s summer arrival has spoken about his career before moving to Deepdale.

Preston North End striker Jusef Erabi admits his parents’ experiences provide him with another reason to succeed on the football pitch.

One of PNE’s summer arrivals, the loanee made an instant impact with a goal on his debut against Huddersfield Town in the Carabao Cup last weekend.

He is the son of Wahid Erabi, a former Afghanistan international who made the move to Scandinavia with his wife in the 1990s.

Having settled there, they saw Erabi the younger progress through youth football with a number of clubs before making his mark with Stockholm-based Hammarby IF.

Five years with them brought 19 goals in 73 matches as well as 16 in 46 for Hammarby’s feeder team, Hammarby TFF, and a loan move to IK Frej.

That was followed by a move to Belgian club Genk last year and while it was a tough start, Erabi admits his parents’ sacrifices put that into perspective.

The 23-year-old said: “My parents came to Sweden in 1999. They did everything for their children to have a better life than they had.

“As you get older, you realise what they did and it’s extra motivation when you play football.

“One of my dreams in Sweden was to play at the club I was in; when I reached that goal I was really happy. That was an amazing feeling.”

Erabi’s time with Hammarby IF also saw him named as the club’s player of the year in 2023 before signing a new contract at the end of the year.

He left the following September with Genk taking him into the Belgian top flight, though his first season didn’t go to plan.

Subscribe now for HALF PRICE and catch every minute of our PNE coverage this season - from pre-season to the final whistle. Click here

“It was a really nice feeling,” Erabi said of his award while at Hammarby.

“I was only 19 years old, just turned 20, so it was a big accomplishment. To be in that league was an amazing feeling.

“I’m at an age where I want to play where I can play the most.

“Things didn’t turn out the way I wanted (with Genk), to do it in the Championship is amazing; it’s where I want to be.

“You just have to work hard. As a player, you want to do as well as possible and if you don’t play, show why you should play. For me, everything happens for a reason.”