Preston North End

Speaking at his pre-match press conference, as well as the football club's own media channels, the Berkshire club's boss was expecting a tough challenge, but one he believes his team can overcome.

 

"Preston are a decent side," he said. "We had a really tough game against them towards the end of last season and we managed to come out victorious in that fixture and that's what we need to try and do in this game as well, but it is away from home.

 

"They play football, they have lots of movement and they have some players who can really make a difference.

 

"We will need to be very solid defensively, but I am certainly going to put out a team that I think can cause them a problem as well, because we have got good players.

 

"Maybe they have lacked confidence lately, but we have worked hard on the training field and when you are well prepared it gives you a better chance, especially mentally, to do well and we have three important games in a week.

 

"Any game, home or away, you are getting points in beneficial. Our last two away performances have been okay. We have been to two very difficult places in Aston Villa and Blackburn and picked up a point in both those games, so we don’t have any fear going away from home, some of our better performances have been away from home."

 

He has been pleased with the international break and the work undertaken by his squad: "The break has been good - we’ve had some good sessions with the group," he continued. "We did four sessions last week and we’re on nine sessions now.

 

"We had groups of 16, 18 and done loads of good things. The atmosphere has been positive and it needs to be that - no point dwelling on the past. We are full of belief and confidence we can turn the corner.

 

"We've been working hard. We know we have lots to improve on, so we have used the time effectively. We had some players away on international duty and some didn't arrive back until today, but we still had a decent sized group for practices. We are now doing the final prep for the game against Preston."

 

And despite a difficult start to the season Clement believes that the work being done is taking the team in the right direction: "I’m not in fantasy world where we deserve to win all our games. We haven’t been hammered.

 

"We have been in all the games. The margins are very close so I don’t think the wins are far away We have a lot of belief we will do well. There’s no reason why the next six games can’t go well.

 

I don’t think it’s a question of effort with the players. There’s been no situation where we’ve been really outworked by the opposition. The errors have been technical, tactical and mental.

 

"I know there have been comments from outside that there has been disarray at the club, but that is not the feeling I get. We are a lot more cohesive than some of the noises are saying. Grit and determination are so important to being a success. We’re in a difficult situation so we need to show some," he added.