Preston fans may not remember Kevin Thelwell too much, but he has been on an upward trajectory since leaving North End.
Thelwell joined Preston in the summer of 2005, becoming North End’s Director of Youth under Billy Davies.
Just 31 at the time, Thelwell had emerged as an exciting young coach but spent just one year at Preston.
Davies took Thelwell to Derby in 2006, making him the Rams’ academy manager.
Thelwell took a similar job at Wolverhampton Wanderers in 2008, where his career really took off. He moved up from Under-18 boss to Academy manager and then Sporting Director in 2016.
Thelwell played a key role in Wolves’ rise under Fosun, working away off the field to drive Wolves forward.
Last year, Thelwell moved on to become New York Red Bulls’ director of football. Not bad for somebody North End took a chance on at a young age!
Now, the Daily Mail report that Newcastle are interested in poaching Thelwell and landing him as their sporting director.
Thelwell is believed to be on a long list of sporting direct targets for Newcastle after their big takeover earlier this month.
That would be quite the rise for Thelwell, and a sign of what could have been had Preston managed to keep him.