One of Preston North End’s summer signings may at last start his first game for the club when they face Queens Park Rangers on Friday night.
Not many will have envisaged Calvin Ramsay having to wait until the 1st December before playing a game at Deepdale, but with Brad Potts now suspended after picking up five bookings, the Scottish right-back is expected to take his spot.
After 39 games for Aberdeen, Ramsay moved to Liverpool at the age of 18 in the summer of 2022, and also has one Scotland cap to his name.
Ramsay has suffered setbacks and injuries during his time with Preston but also last season when with Liverpool. Ryan Lowe identified Ramsay and brought him in on loan early in the summer transfer window. It seems as if we have always been in need of wing-backs under Lowe, and this was the first one on the right hand side he had brought in.
Ramsay arrived highly rated, with glowing reviews from Jurgen Klopp and Andrew Robertson. His first season at Liverpool was littered with back and knee problems but he will be desperate to have a good run at Championship level now.
Brad Potts had made the right-wing back position his own under Ryan Lowe. He has played every minute of every league game so far this season, but will have to sit Friday’s encounter out. Potts epitomises the way we play with his relentless energy and driving skills.
Ramsay will be a technically different player, with a real turn of pace and a great delivery. Lowe doesn’t really have any other options to come in a replace Potts, apart from maybe Alan Browne, but the captain has been performing well in the middle of the park.
Duane Holmes could potentially be another option, but his height makes him vulnerable in defensive situations.
Ramsay did play the second half against Middlesbrough on Tuesday night, but the game was already gone by then, and it was a tough game to come into. It was a terrible team performance and a lot of the team may be changed around, with the majority having underperformed.
Nevertheless Ramsay will have been happy to be back on the pitch after an injury disrupted time with Preston so far.
There is a few Liverpool connections within the squad, with Ben Woodburn and Layton Stewart having come through the ranks at Anfield as well.
He should have a fresh chance on Friday against a QPR side who have had a sluggish start to the season, although they did win on Tuesday 4-2 against Alex Neil’s Stoke City side; but that was just their second home win since October 2022. Preston are in need of a win, after just two in 12, and hopefully Ramsay can show why he is so highly rated by many.