Aston Villa, Tottenham Hotspur and Everton youngsters have all impressed on loan at Preston North End this season.
Preston North End captain Ben Whiteman believes Deepdale is ‘definitely the place’ for Premier League youngsters to thrive on loan.
Paul Heckingbottom’s ranks were boosted by the arrival of Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Alfie Devine and Aston Villa winger Lewis Dobbin during the summer transfer window, while Everton prospect Harrison Armstrong also enjoyed a productive loan stint with the Lilywhites before being recalled by the Toffees last month.
Since returning to his parent club, Armstrong has featured heavily in the Premier League and was part of David Moyes’ starting XI for Monday night’s home defeat against Manchester United.
However, Devine and Dobbin have remained as part of the North End squad and will remain integral as Heckingbottom’s side push for a Championship play-off place between now and the end of the season. Between them, the Premier League youngsters have provided 14 goals and eight assists during the campaign and have shown why they are so highly-rated at their parent clubs.
The duo have also earned praise from Lilywhites skipper Whiteman, who believes their progress and the moves Alvaro Carreras and Liam Delap secured after spending temporary stints at Deepdale, show that North End are capable of aiding the careers of Premier League youngsters.
He told BBC Radio Lancashire: “It has definitely been a pleasure to work with those two and hopefully one of them signs, but we will wait and see. The loan lads that come in normally go on to do really well. We’ve got a lad playing at Real Madrid (Alvaro Carreras) and we’ve got a lad playing at Chelsea (Liam Delap). So if you are looking at somewhere to send someone on loan, this is definitely the place.”
What did Liam Delap say about his loan spell at Preston North End?
Liam Delap.placeholder image
Liam Delap. | CameraSport - Rich Linley
Speaking last year, the current Chelsea striker said: ”As a player there are always going to be bumps in the road. I probably learned that I had to go somewhere which suited me. A couple of times I didn't really suit the way teams played and I found it difficult. Last season was a lot better and I chose really well there - at Hull - which helped me a lot.
“The manager there was really good and helped me improve as a player. I was still very young when I went to Stoke and Preston. They obviously didn't go as well as I wanted them to. It was an incredible experience and I was very grateful I got to do that. I learned more in that year than I (ever) have.
“It taught me a lot about how to go about things and I made more of a decision then, when I went to Hull, about looking into and doing more research on where I want to go - and what would be best for me. That is probably what helped at Hull and it went a lot better there."
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