Bradford City told to avoid 'weird' Paul Heckingbottom decision | OneFootball

FLW's Bradford City fan pundit doesn't want to see Paul Heckingbottom and Stuart McCall as the next dugout duo at Valley Parade

The day many Bradford City fans have dreaded since the managerial position at Preston North End became open has arrived, as Graham Alexander has left to join the club he spent nine years as a player.

The Bantams boss has been heavily credited with the rise of the West Yorkshire sleeping giant over the nearly three years he spent at Valley Parade. Bradford were 16th in League Two when he arrived in November 2023. He leaves them top of League One, having finished fourth last season.

However, the lure of Preston, a club Alexander sits in the top 10 on the all-time appearance makers list for, was too large, and Bradford are now in a peculiar position where they're on the hunt for a new manager, despite being top of the league.

One name which has been thrown out is Alexander's predecessor at Deepdale, Paul Heckingbottom — a rumour strengthened by the fact that his assistant in his last two jobs, Stuart McCall, is a three-time manager at Bradford himself, having held the post for over 250 games, following a playing career which saw him line out close to 400 times for the Bantams.

Bradford City fan pundit urges Bantams not to hire Paul Heckingbottom

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Paul Heckingbottom hasn't managed in League One since earning promotion in his first job at Barnsley in 2016 via the play-offs. That was the second time that Tykes side won at Wembley that season, picking up the EFL Trophy, too.

Since then, the 49-year-old earned promotion to the Premier League with Sheffield United and had Preston battling in and around the top six of the Championship last year around the new year, which was when the Lilywhites' form took a slide, which bled into the start of this season.

That poor start, which saw Preston lose six of their first seven league games, is enough to deter FLW's Bradford fan pundit, Boris Thompson, from wanting to see him in the dugout at Valley Parade.

"I think it's a weird one if we were to appoint Heckingbottom," he said. "It feels like a backwards step, really, doing a managerial swap.

"Alexander's left under the conditions that we granted him permission to speak with Preston, and I think him going to Preston with how we're looking to shape up this season is a backwards step for him, too.

"So bringing in Heckingbottom doesn't make sense."

Bradford City fan pundit admits a Stuart McCall return would be "interesting"

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Thompson acknowledges that Paul Heckingbottom's assistant for the last five years, Stuart McCall, is a legend at Bradford and, as a manager, helped guide the club through some really difficult times.

The former Scotland international took over back in 2007 when the club had just been relegated to League Two for the first time since the 1977/78 campaign, again in 2016, with the club battling in the League One play-offs, and then for a period in 2020 back in the fourth tier.

"We have a saying amongst Bradford fans that, when we're in a crisis, and we're not now, by the way, we'll appoint Stuart McCall," the fan pundit explained.

Evidently, the Bantams aren't in need of saving; rather, they need someone who can continue Graham Alexander's good work and finish what he started. Thompson doesn't think hiring Heckingbottom and McCall would indicate that.

"Do I like Stuart McCall as a manager? Yes. Has he been in charge through some difficult times? Yes. Do I think he'd be a backwards step for us? Maybe," he continued.

"That would be an interesting dynamic, having Heckingbottom and McCall as a managerial pair, with Heckingbottom obviously having the title of manager, but it'd be a strange one. It's not the most ambitious option for me; it's not where we should be looking.

"We'll see where it takes us, though. I have full trust in David Sharpe (Head of Football) to make the right decision, but it's an interesting one. It's been tough times for us Bradford fans this week."

Paul Heckingbottom could be a solid hire for Bradford City

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On the face of things, bringing in someone who couldn't get a tune out of a Preston squad which had an uncharacteristically large amount of money invested into it this summer, off the back of a relegation near miss in 2024/25 and a poor second half to last season, doesn't seem the smartest hire.

Therefore, you can almost understand where Thompson and some like-minded Bradford fans are coming from.

But, despite how 2026 has gone for Preston, there's still little doubt about Heckingbottom's ability in the dugout. His stock may be a little lower because of it, but if his next job were in the Championship, not many would question it.

That's because, while second-bottom in the division this season, North End's underlying numbers suggested they should have been around mid-table.

They were made to rue defensive errors at times, and the way they threw away a two-goal lead against a ten-man QPR side in their first game after his sacking almost shows that, while a change needed to be made in the dugout, the fault arguably didn't just lie with the manager.

For someone who has managed at a level or two higher than League One for the last decade, bringing him in wouldn't be the end of the world, and if he can continue this early-season promotion push at Valley Parade, those concerns about a hire would quickly be quieted.