It's a topic of debate at the moment for Preston North End - who will make the cut in midfield for Ryan Lowe with so many options available to them?

Even more namely is, how can he keep leaving out Ali McCann when the Northern Ireland international continues to impress? There are only three real spaces in the squad for midfielders right now, with two spots centrally and then one attacking midfield berth to be filled.

With Daniel Johnson an almost certainty to fill the more advanced role and Ben Whiteman excelling in his position in the centre of the field, that leaves Alan Browne, Ryan Ledson and Ali McCann to fight for the remaining spot.

Even with Johnson out of the equation recently though, McCann has often found himself resigned to sitting on the sidelines. However, after impressing against Bristol City and then putting in a lively showing against Millwall in midweek, he is doing plenty to help his case at the moment.

In a game which needed some creativity, as well as some defensive graft, Ali McCann was able to provide both. When he got hold of the ball, he looked lively and ran at the Millwall opponents who struggled to really stop him at times. In fact, the 22-year-old found himself to be the most fouled player in the match because of it, being downed three times.

His vision and passing was on point too. Considering that the Lions were often very hard to break down and it was hard to exploit the space both between and behind them, McCann showed his ability in splitting open their defence and picking out a teammate with 24 accurate passes out of 29 attempted (as per SofaScore). That is a pass success rate of 83% and is solid considering the way that both sides set up.

It wasn't just on the attack that McCann excelled though. When the Lions tried to break, the player tracked back and fulfilled his defensive duties as instructed by Ryan Lowe. On the back foot, McCann was able to win six of his nine ground duels and made three tackles, with one interception. He doesn't test the opposition goalkeeper much - he didn't manage a shot all game and it isn't often he does manage a shot on target or even a shot - but he can certainly create chances and tee up his teammates.

There is a real decision that needs to be made then going forward for Ryan Lowe. With Daniel Johnson set to return from international duty and Alan Browne now rested, it leaves him with three spots to fill and five good players to choose from. Considering his showings though - and his ability to contribute both going forward and getting back - there should surely be some room in the eleven for McCann. If he is needed centrally, he can do whatever is required and if he is needed in a CAM role, he can certainly do the business in attack.

Either way then, McCann is really putting himself into the consideration for Ryan Lowe.