Barkhuizen reveals fresh approach for Preston
Preston North End forward Tom Barkhuizen says the squad has cleared the air as they look for Championship promotion this season.
Barkhuizen and his side suffered a fourth defeat in five games on Saturday, going down 3-1 to Queens Park Rangers.
This was despite Daniel Johnson’s 19th-minute penalty putting them ahead, only to fall to second-half goals from Grant Hall, Ryan Manning and Eberechi Eze.
Despite North End’s poor recent showings, they are still sixth in the Championship table ahead of Saturday’s trip to Luton and Barkhuizen and co will be aiming to bounce back at Kenilworth road.
Bristol City currently sit seventh in the table, a point behind Alex Neil’s men, with Brentford and Nottingham Forest fourth and fifth on 60 points, four better off than PNE.
With nine games to go, Preston are well in the mix for promotion and a strong run now will see them finish in the top six and have a shot at the play-offs.
💬 “It is important to keep our focus. We know we are going through a difficult period, which we have done before and we know that we will come through the other side like we have done before.”
Focus is key says @tombarkhuizen9. ➡️ https://t.co/1kd1a2Z7ks #pnefc pic.twitter.com/eqZe9bQGZw
— Preston North End FC (@pnefc) March 10, 2020
Barkhuizen says the players had a few stern words for each other following Saturday’s loss to QPR. However, he believes the conflict came at the right time as it has allowed them to refocus ahead of the run-in.
“We have done a lot of reflecting on the game on Saturday, just to get a few things off our chest collectively and now it is about coming in and getting ourselves ready for Saturday,” he told iFollow PNE.
“It is important to keep our focus. We are fortunate that we have managed to keep ourselves in and around it, which is important and we just need to stay confident.”
