Alex Neil has admitted that, whilst the facilities at Preston’s new training ground were great, he actually preferred the old Springfields base.
Neil has been speaking to The Coaches’ Voice about his time at Preston having left the club back in March of this year.
The Scot spoke of his frustrations at players being sold, admitting that he felt the club just couldn’t achieve the ambition of play-offs having lost so much quality.
One of the most interesting lines was about the club’s training ground.
Neil admitted that the facilities at Euxton are great, but he missed the feel of Preston’s old training ground at Springfields.
“That group really felt like my team. As they slowly filtered out of the exit door over my years at Deepdale, the club started to feel less like the Preston I knew,” said Neil. “We also changed training ground. Even though the facilities were better, I preferred the feel of the old place,” he added.
Springfields is nothing to really write home about. Located in Lea and right next to Savick Brook, Springfields was basic – especially for a Championship club.
Yet that’s ultimately where many of Neil’s squad grew together. It was old school and may have played its own part in building camaraderie, in a weird way.
Preston moved to their current Euxton training base in 2020, purchasing it from Wigan Athletic – who had bought it from Bolton Wanderers in 2016.
Euxton is a facility more befitting of a Championship club at the very least, but Neil clearly felt a strong connection to Springfields.
Whether any players agree with him, we may never know – but Preston will probably feel they made the right decision.