Preston return to action on Saturday afternoon, taking on Rotherham United at Deepdale with some difficult decisions facing boss Alex Neil.
Three players have arrived since last weekend’s 1-0 defeat at Sheffield Wednesday; Liam Lindsay, Sepp van den Berg and Anthony Gordon all signed on deadline day and are in contention to play.
Van den Berg is a particularly intriguing signings. The Dutchman has joined on loan from Liverpool until the end of the season, with the chance of extending that for next term.
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Liverpool included Van den Berg in the deadline day deal that saw them sign Ben Davies from North End, seemingly wanting him to gain more first team football.
The 19-year-old joined Liverpool from PEC Zwolle in 2019, but is well down the defensive pecking order at Anfield.
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The Athletic now have a report on Van den Berg in which they claim the defender has made progress in the Under-23’s this season, particularly in terms of being the ‘loudest leader on the pitch’.
Van den Berg did look shaky in first-team appearances last season, but Liverpool clearly have high hopes for him, and believe that this loan move should be great for his development.
The report even adds that Bayern Munich made a late bid for Van den Berg in 2019 but couldn’t hijack his move to Liverpool.
It’s clear that Van den Berg is highly rated, and we will now hope to see his quality shine through at Preston – though whether he will become an immediate starter under Neil remains to be seen.