Anthony Gordon is a player who Everton have really high hopes for and will no doubt be looking for their young prospect to really thrive whilst out on loan at Preston North End after joining up with the Lilywhites in January. 

The teenager was quickly thrown into the action by Alex Neil and was handed his debut for the Championship club in their home defeat to Rotherham United, with the youngster being afforded over an hour of game time.

Starting in his favoured left midfield position seemingly helped Gordon to settle into the rhythm of second tier football with the winger having three shots during what was a positive first showing for his new club.

Here, we take a look at the main obstacles which stand in the player's way after what was a promising start to his career on loan with Preston at the weekend.

Scott Sinclair's presence 

The experienced winger has been almost ever present for the Lilywhites under Neil this term and will surely not take too kindly to the club bringing in competition for his spot on the left wing.

Gordon is likely to face fierce resistance in his pursuit of a regular starting spot from the 31-year-old and could well have to settle for a place on the bench if he fails to dislodge the former Celtic man in the long term.

Having already netted eight goals this season, the winger is likely to remain as North End's first choice, meaning that Gordon will have to really impress early on to get a chance of starting ahead of him.

This is certainly the main obstacle in the young winger's way right now and he'll need to step up in order to overcome it.

Adapting to limited possession

North End rarely dominate possession in games and as a result usually fashion a lot of their goal scoring chances from counter attacking situations.

Neil has already spoken recently about the need for the young winger to track back, so the new few weeks should be something of an adaption period for a player that is used to being on a team that dominates ball possession at Everton.

Adhering to the physical demands of his new manager will be vital as Preston do like to defend in low blocks when out of possession.

Another area in which Gordon needs to improve upon is his decision making, a factor which will be key to making the most of the counter attacks that the team fashion as a whole.