Preston sack Heckingbottom after six defeats in seven games leave club second bottom

Paul Heckingbottom has been sacked as Preston North End manager following a 1-0 home defeat to Lincoln City on Saturday that left the Championship club second bottom after six losses in their opening seven league games.

The 49-year-old had been in charge at Deepdale for just over two years, overseeing 109 games in total. But a wretched run of form — just five wins across 27 league matches since January — proved fatal, particularly after Preston’s record summer outlay of around £15 million on new signings failed to translate into results.

Assistant manager Stuart McCall has also left the club as part of the shake-up. Jason Euell will take interim charge of first-team matters while Preston search for a permanent replacement.

A club statement cited the gap between investment and performance as the decisive factor. “Football is a results business and despite significant investment in the playing squad since Paul joined, the results during 2026 and the start of this current campaign have not been acceptable,” it read. The statement acknowledged Heckingbottom’s “professionalism and work ethic” before confirming the club would move quickly to appoint a new manager.

Angry supporters chanted for Heckingbottom’s dismissal at full time on Saturday, and the former Leeds United head coach did not shy away from the pressure. Speaking to the Lancashire Evening Post after the game, he said: “Yes, I understand [the chants]. You can’t hide away from it. As I say, it’s a results business. There’s only one way to stop it and that’s to win the games.”

Those words proved prophetic. Preston’s hierarchy moved within hours of the final whistle, ending a tenure that began with promise but deteriorated sharply in 2026. The club’s significant pre-season spending had raised expectations at Deepdale, making the collapse in form all the more difficult for the board to tolerate.

Euell now faces the immediate task of steadying a squad that has conceded ground rapidly at the wrong end of the Championship table.