"Falling in love" - Preston North End man hailed amid potential Aston Villa action | OneFootball

He’s made a very strong start to his temporary switch

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 have had a tricky start to the season, currently finding themselves near the bottom of the Championship table going into a busy set of fixtures.

The appointment of Paul Heckingbottom hasn't launched the Lilywhites up the standings immediately as hoped, with the Yorkshireman still getting to grips with what he has to work with at Deepdale.

As we head towards the midpoint of the season, now is the time when any new arrivals have usually had enough time to make an impression on a fanbase.

Kaine Kesler-Hayden labelled ‘magic’ by North End fan

In Preston’s case, it’s been relatively slim pickings when it comes to the Player of the Season so far, but there is one individual who has stood out for fans.

We asked our Preston Fan Pundit, Darren Watson, to pick one player out, and he immediately turned to Kaine Kesler-Hayden.

The 22-year-old is currently on loan from Aston Villa, and the North End fan believes he has been a standout so far in what has been a disappointing campaign on the whole.

Speaking to Football League World, Darren said: “We're in a bit of a position at the club at the moment, where we're struggling so far this season to finish teams off when we’re scoring.

“So, to be honest, the one player that actually is the best player in our team right now is Kaine Kesler-Hayden. Obviously, we've got him on loan from Aston Villa, and he's absolutely just been amazing.

“Everybody’s said how much energy he's got. If I could sum him up in exactly one word, I would say: Magical.

“And I mean that in the sense of, you know, when you think the ball’s going out of play, he just carries on running. The man's a magician with the ball.

“For such a short time here at North End he’s shown so much promise and it's this classic thing where I can see myself falling in love with another loan player again because he's that type of player.

“I can see the Premier League-level of standard within him already, and (I think) Villa would be very stupid to let him go on loan or go on loan again.

“If I was the Aston Villa boss, I’d be looking how well he's doing at Preston now and thinking of working him into my first team; he is that good, and I do believe that.

“We’ve had loan players in the past, obviously the season before that, Liam Millar. He was really great player - I highly rated Liam Millar.

“But seeing Kaine Kesler-Hayden compared to what Liam Millar was last season, obviously they're two different positions, but he’s head and shoulders above him in every way.

“I just think that he's a magical player. And if he carries on the way he's going, I’d like him to stay at North End, but if he does obviously stay with Villa, his parent club, and play in the Premier League, I can see big things happening for the lad, I really can.”

That Kesler-Hayden has been a success at Deepdale is clear immediately through the amount of time he’s spent on the pitch.

He’s already in double figures for Championship starts, which is not always a given for a young player going out on loan from a Premier League side.

Undoubtedly a key factor in his exposure to first-team minutes has been his adaptability; he’s played in defensive and more advanced positions on both flanks, showing that he can be just as effective on the left as the right.

And, based on Darren’s assessment, he’s passed each assignment with flying colours, the mark of a player who is more than comfortable at the level.

That will be a big positive for the player, but may work against Preston in the short-term - if Villa feel they could secure a move to a team higher in the league, or begin to introduce him somewhere in their first-team squad, they may well pull the trigger to recall him, leaving Preston short.

Last January, when Kesler-Hayden was supposed to be spending 2023-24 at Plymouth Argyle, Villa triggered their recall option, and the defender went on to make a handful of cameo Premier League outings as backup to Matty Cash, so it does show that Unai Emery is keeping a close eye on his development.

Whether the same thing happens once more in 2025 remains to be seen, but PNE will be praying that Kesler-Hayden remains at Deepdale beyond the February 3 deadline.