"Needs to start" - Paul Heckingbottom told to use star signed from Aston Villa against Millwall | OneFootball

Our Preston North End fan pundit discussed what changes he'd like to see Paul Heckingbottom make for the next fixture

This article is part of Football League World’s 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Preston North End boss Paul Heckingbottom has been told to freshen up the starting XI with Aston Villa loanee Kaine Kesler-Hayden after his performance from the bench against Blackburn Rovers.

The 21-year-old made the move to Deepdale on a season-long loan in the summer, and has started two Championship games to date, but was an unused substitute for their trip to Middlesbrough before being used from the bench in the recent game against Blackburn.

This means that the wing-back has played just over 200 Championship minutes for Preston so far this season, and will be looking for more regular starting opportunities as the campaign progresses.

The Villa loanee has plenty of Championship experience thanks to previous spells with Huddersfield Town and Plymouth Argyle, and would have seen the move to Preston as an opportunity to nail down a regular starting berth.

Preston North End told to start Kaine Kesler-Hayden

Our Preston North End fan pundit, Darren Watson, believes that Kesler-Hayden has shown enough in his recent outings to warrant a starting berth, and would like to see him come into Heckingbottom's starting XI when they make the trip to Millwall on Saturday.

Speaking to Football League World, Darren said: "Following on from Sunday’s game against Blackburn Rovers, I actually think that the team Heckingbottom fielded was really good.

“We saw some massive improvements from the team, wanting to go forward, wanting to move the ball wide, wanting to get into the box, cross it in and defend well as a team.

“One change that I probably would make is Kesler-Hayden, who we’ve got on loan from Villa, needs to start.

“He came on as a substitute, and he raised the level of the game with his speed, he is fast, and he’s one of the players that has really impressed me so far and, hopefully, he can continue this form.

“He wants to beat players, get to the line and cross the ball in. He’s not static in one place, he wants to be all over that pitch, so we’ve done really well to secure him on loan, and I’m excited to see what he can do for the rest of the season.”

Kaine Kesler-Hayden will prove to be a shrewd signing by Preston

Kesler-Hayden is seen as someone with bags of potential and is highly-rated by Aston Villa, so he looks set to be a real asset for North End over the course of the season.

Next week sees the first Championship midweek fixtures of the season and with games set to come thick and fast, squad depth will be tested, meaning that he will likely get starting opportunities.

It's clear that Kesler-Hayden is well thought of by the Deepdale faithful, and he's impressed during his outings so far, with his versatility making him a good option for most teams in the division, and he replaced Mads Frokjaer-Jensen on Sunday, an attacking midfielder.

The Villa man would have been frustrated with his lack of league starts so far, but he hasn't let it affect him, and he's remained positive and willing to work hard.

Saturday's trip to The Den could provide Kesler-Hayden with the opportunity to make his third league start for the Lilywhites, and he'll be looking to take his chance with both hands if selected by Heckingbottom.