Preston North End slumped to another defeat on Saturday afternoon, losing 4-1 away at recently-relegated Watford.
Alex Neil’s injury-hit side started brightly, but fell behind as Domingos Quina opened the scoring from Ismaila Sarr’s cross.
Sarr won a second half penalty which Troy Deeney hammered home, and whilst Tom Barkhuizen brought Preston back into the game with a deflected strike, it was a brief glimmer of hope.
SAKA, ANTONY AND 10 PREMIER LEAGUE STARS HEADING TO THEIR FIRST WORLD CUP
Nathaniel Chalobah volleyed in from Deeney’s superb pass, before an unmarked Joao Pedro completed the humiliation with a close-range effort.
That’s now seven goals conceded in the last two games, and Alex Neil finds himself under major pressure having lost three of the last four games.
MORE PRESTON STORIES
The debate over Neil’s future raged on over Twitter, but some fans were particularly concerned with the performance of midfielder Daniel Johnson.
The 28-year-old is out of contract at the end of the season, and currently looks unlikely to sign a new deal having been the subject of a failed £1.5million bid from Rangers over the summer.
If Rangers still want Johnson, they will be able to hand him a pre-contract agreement in January, and some fans are worried that the Jamaican international’s head has been turned.
Some felt that Johnson was ‘off the mark’ against Watford, and there are real concerns that his heart is no longer in it at Preston as he wants a January move away from the club.
That is of course just guesswork, but with Johnson’s contract running down, there seems to be real concern that his performances are suffering due to the uncertainty.