Preston North End were promoted to the Championship at the end of the 2014/15 campaign, following an unbelievable 4-0 play-off final victory over Swindon Town.

Nobody expected anything from the Whites, including their own fans.

The main objective for the club was just to stay up and to then build for the seasons that followed.

But what happened during the course of the 2015/16 season took almost everybody by surprise.

For parts of the season, a play-off place even seemed like it could be on the cards but in the end they finished in 11th position, which was massively exceeding the club's objectives.

During the season, they actually managed to take points from all of the top six of the Championship season, including a victory over champions Burnley.

After an impressive first season back in the Championship, Preston will be looking to build on their 11th place finish and aim even higher.

FLW writer Tom Rawcliffe identifies THREE reasons why Preston can achieve higher than they did last season......

 

Summer recruits

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Preston have wasted no time this summer, having already signed 7 players with Simon Grayson wanting to build a strong squad prior to North End's pre-season fixtures.

One signing which has got the North End faithful excited is the acquisition of Ben Pringle from Fulham.

The former Rotherham man has a wonderful left foot and his great crossing ability may prove helpful to fellow signing Simon Makienok, a striker on loan from Palermo who stands at 6ft 7.

They have also added other attacking players with former loanees Callum Robinson and Eoin Doyle returning to Deepdale on permanent deals.

Defensive strengths

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One strength of Preston's, especially since Grayson took over at Deepdale, is their strength at the back.

In their last 3 seasons put together they have only conceded 131 goals which averages out at conceding less than 1 goal per game.

They have also strengthened over the summer in this area by bringing in Tommy Spurr from Blackburn Rovers. He adds experience of 263 Championship games but also good versatility with him being able to play at left-back and also centre-back.

With Bailey Wright they also have a very good, young centre-back who somehow still manages to improve every year.

Experience

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After getting promoted to the division above, it is always important that you have players with experience of playing in that division.

Last time round, there was a mix between Premier League youngsters and proven Championship players but this season, they've mainly gone for experience.

As well as Tommy Spurr as was mentioned before, Preston have brought in former Premier League goalkeeper Anders Lindegaard

In fact, six of their seven signings were all playing in the Championship last season so they all know about the quality that's required.

Preston fans... Do you think that you can achieve a higher place in the league next season? Are you satisfied with the signings that you have made? Have your say in the comments below!