Throughout his three seasons at Preston North End, Patrick Bauer has been one of the first names on the teamsheet.
After his arrival from Charlton Athletic on a free transfer in the summer of 2018, he became an instrumental part of the defence, striking a very pleasing partnership with Ben Davies. A natural leader, with a commanding presence in both areas, ‘The BFG’ quickly became a fan favourite.
His absence was felt when he suffered a very bad achilles injury against Bournemouth in December 2020, which ruled him out of the remainder of that COVID-hit season. It was even harder for Preston when Ben Davies departed for Liverpool a month later.
The weakness in defence was a key reason for Frankie McAvoy switching to five at the back. He felt the side weren’t good enough to play with a flat back four. Liam Lindsay, Jordan Storey, Sepp van Den Berg and Andrew Hughes were the main players having to play in those roles.
Bauer’s return to the team at the start of this season was welcomed, and he found himself scoring a match winning goal early on in the season at home to Peterborough United. The German was back!
His central position in the defence has never looked under threat this season. The only thing that was under threat, was the chance that he could leave the club in the summer with his contract expiring. However, despite some supposed interest from back home, Bauer put pen to paper to commit his future to the Lancashire club.
The 29-year-old’s latest deal sees him tied down until 2024. However his performances since that new deal in mid-January have started to dwindle. His agility has come into question, and it was massively exposed by Lucas Joao for Reading last Saturday. Suddenly Bauer has looked a little shaky and a little lost up against some top quality players.
You must take into account that a bad achilles injury can take a few yards out of a player. It becomes a weak point and he was taken off earlier in the season due to a scare in that area. Having played 27 games this season he may be due a rest just to catch his breath.
Furthermore Ryan Lowe will want a proper look at Liam Lindsay who has looked solid in his brief cameos so far this season. There may even be an opportunity to get Paul Huntington involved, a chance for Bambo Diaby’s debut and to maybe even try out Josh Earl as a centre-back. It looks highly likely we will be without Van den Berg next season, so it’s also a chance to have a look at some other options currently available to us.
Bauer will continue to be an important player for this club but there have been some faults in his game recently. Some time out of the side can be good for a player although they may not realise it at the time.
The Championship is a long daunting season, and it takes it’s toll on any squad. Preston fans know deep down the qualities Bauer brings, we just haven’t seen them of late, but a return to form shouldn’t be too far away.