Former Preston boss Alex Neil still hasn’t clinched a return to management – and ex-North End defender David Gray could rival him at Hibernian.
Preston are onto their second manager since Neil’s exit in March. Frankie McAvoy took over but lost his job last week, with Ryan Lowe coming in.
The hope is that Lowe can get back to building on Neil’s fine work in almost four years at Preston.
As for Neil, he could head into 2022 still out of work. That’s incredible to us, given how many Football League clubs have changed manager this season.
It may not have ended well, but Neil was an outstanding manager for Preston and we would be confident in him succeeding elsewhere.
Football Scotland claim that Neil is in contention for the Hibernian job. Hibs sacked Jack Ross last week and want a replacement.
Neil heading back to Scotland makes some sense, especially having worked wonders at Hamilton Academical.
Hibs would do well to find a better manager than Neil, but a surprise contender could come in the form of ex-Preston defender David Gray.
Some will remember Gray turning out for North End after a 2010 move from Manchester United.
Snapped up under Darren Ferguson, Gray turned out 53 times for Preston before leaving in 2012.
The Scot moved on to Stevenage and Burton Albion before heading back up to Scotland with Hibs in 2014.
With 177 games for Hibs, Gray became a hero – especially he captained Hibs to a Scottish Cup win over Rangers in 2016, bagging a stoppage-time winner.
Gray retired last summer and became first-team coach at Hibs, and Sky Sports now claim he is in contention for the managerial job.
Gray is caretaker after Ross’s departure, meaning he has a golden chance to stun Preston fans and pip Neil to the job at Easter Road.