Peter Ridsdale makes Ryan Lowe observation after 18 months as Preston North End boss

Preston North End director Peter Ridsdale believes Ryan Lowe has improved as a manager during his time at Deepdale.

Appointed in December 2021 to succeed Frankie McAvoy, Lowe arrived with a burgeoning reputation given his work at Bury and Plymouth Argyle. The Liverpudlian’s first press conference captured the imagination of supporters, with the January addition of loan star Cameron Archer helping PNE kick on in the second half of the season.

The following campaign was certainly up and down, with North End’s away form excellent but the product on show at Deepdale extremely poor. Preston ended up finishing 12th, with improvement seen in February to April after a particularly testing festive period. Again, a loan striker signing in Tom Cannon proved to be a huge boost.

Lowe headed into his second full season as manager this summer and his team are top of the Championship after five games. The club recruited six permanent players in the transfer window and two loans. Lowe has spoken about altering tactics to suit his squad of players more - and Ridsdale sees a manager who continues to learn.

"I will have to choose my words carefully, because I get on really well with Ryan and I don't want to say anything he thinks is critical of him," said Ridsdale. "My view is that everybody, in every job, if they are good, learns something new every day. I have been doing this a long time and I learn something new every day.

“Ryan has been doing it for a relatively short space of time and I think he's a better manager today, than the day we hired him. I think that is a compliment, because when you bring someone else in who has been successful elsewhere - albeit at a lower league - you walk in and assume it will be as easy. But, the Championship is unforgiving and I think it sometimes a shock to the system just how tough it is.

“So, do I think he has learned a lot? Yes, I do. Do I think he will continue to learn a lot? Yes, I do. I see that as a compliment to Ryan because I think he wants to learn a lot and recognises that. I think he is going to be an outstanding manager, because he's learning, taking it all on board and prepared to learn and listen. He is a pleasure to work with."