Graham Alexander returns to Preston with fresh start for struggling squad

Graham Alexander has returned to Preston North End as manager after leaving League One leaders Bradford City, taking charge of a club where he made 372 league appearances as a player. BBC Sport reported that the 54-year-old succeeded Paul Heckingbottom on Monday, with Preston second from bottom in the Championship after losing six of their opening eight league matches.

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Speaking to BBC Radio Lancashire, Alexander described an emotional return to Deepdale and said the appointment only began to feel real once he put on his training kit. He and his wife reflected on the journey back to a club that has played a substantial part in their lives. His Preston playing career covered two spells and ended with his retirement in 2012, aged 40.

Alexander briefly served as caretaker at Preston during his final playing season. He then declined an opportunity to begin coaching in the club's academy and built his managerial career elsewhere. His previous jobs include Fleetwood Town, Scunthorpe United, Salford City, Motherwell and MK Dons. The new appointment gives him his first opportunity to manage in the Championship, according to the BBC report.

His personal ties to Preston remained strong throughout those moves. Alexander explained that taking the Motherwell job had meant leaving an area where his family had been happy for 20 years. When they later returned to England, he gave his wife the choice of where to settle. She chose Preston and the north west, reflecting the relationships they had established there.

For the current squad, Alexander said the managerial change offered an opportunity to start again rather than carry previous difficulties forward. He has roughly two weeks to work with the players before his first competitive fixture. Preston resume their league campaign after the international break with a home match against Millwall on Saturday, 10 October.

Alexander welcomed that preparation time, contrasting it with previous mid-season appointments that left him only a day or two before a match. He said the window would help him introduce the principles he wants his players to follow, while acknowledging that two weeks would not be enough to complete the team's development. The Millwall game will provide the first competitive test of that work.