Alex Neil defends Paul Gallagher's character again as Preston North End accept ban for elbow on Stoke's Joe Allen

The midfielder was suspended retrospectively on Monday after catching Stoke’s Joe Allen with an elbow in Saturday’s 2-2 draw at Deepdale.

Neil maintains however that there was no malice from his man who begins his suspension at Carrow Road on Wednesday night.

“If I’m being honest it’s no surprise,” said the PNE boss.

“My defence of Paul after the game wasn’t that he didn’t catch him because I said clearly he did catch him.

“I was defending Paul’s character. For me, it isn’t intentional, he’s not that type of lad.

“If he did mean it, we would be having a chat and he would be dealt with accordingly.

“We’ve got lads in our squad who are capable of doing that and Paul isn’t one of them.

“He’s got punished, we’re not going to challenge it because he does catch the lad.

“It’s part and parcel of football.”

After an impressive display saw him score from the spot against his former club, Gallagher’s ban opens the door for others over the next week.

“To be honest, Paul being unavailable is disappointing because he’s a very good player for us but I’m not sitting here thinking ‘what can I do?’” said Neil.

“I’ve got plenty of lads that can come in and do a job for us.

“We’re in a good place when it comes to our squad.”