Preston host Burnley on Tuesday evening and Robbie Brady will be coming up against his former club for the first time since leaving in 2021.
North End’s game at Bristol City on Saturday afternoon was cancelled due to the passing of Queen Elizabeth II.
Tuesday’s clash with Burnley is expected to go ahead though, giving fans a chance to pay their respects and then cheer on North End in a big Lancashire derby.
The two teams haven’t met in the Championship since 2016, when a deflected Joey Barton free kick handed Burnley a 1-0 win.
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We finally meet again and one Preston player will be going up against his former club.
Ryan Lowe swooped to sign Robbie Brady on a free transfer this summer, bringing the former Burnley man back to Lancashire after leaving Bournemouth.
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Brady has impressed in a North End shirt, providing quality on the ball as well as Premier League experience to pass on to the group.
The 30-year-old is in a fight for a start alongside Alvaro Fernandez but Brady will hope to start against the team he left last year.
Burnley signed Brady from Norwich City back in January 2017, paying £13million to lure the former Manchester United talent to Turf Moor.
Brady played 81 Premier League games for Burnley but never passed 20 league appearances in a season as injuries marred his time in East Lancashire.
Sean Dyche paid tribute to Brady upon his exit in 2021, stating that the Irishman had been ‘incredibly unfortunate’ at Burnley with injuries leading to his departure.
Dyche also highlighted the ‘quality’ Brady can provide and believed he was brought up the right way by former Preston man Warren Joyce at United.
Brady was clearly highly-regarded at Turf Moor and not just by Dyche.
Teammate Jeff Hendrick highlighted how Brady can be a ‘big player’ when fit whilst goalkeeper Tom Heaton hailed Brady as a ‘top quality player’.
Brady managed six goals and nine assists in 87 games for Burnley but the feeling is that all of those numbers could have been higher.
Every club has those players who have so much ability but injuries just hold them back from reaching their full potential.
Brady appears to be that man for Burnley, but he now has a golden chance to show the Clarets what they’re missing.
This will be Brady’s first game against Burnley since leaving in 2021, and the Irishman would no doubt love a goal just to remind the Clarets faithful of his outstanding ability.