Preston North End will have clear Blackburn Rovers fear as Ewood Park transfer nears | OneFootball

Daniel Jebbison is set to join Blackburn Rovers, with his loan spell at Preston not being renewed, but will North End regret not making a fresh move?

Preston North End will be looking for a much-improved season heading into the 2026/27 campaign under the management of Paul Heckingbottom.

North End finished 14th in the Championship table last season, which will have been disappointing for the Deepdale faithful, after they made a relatively bright start in 2025 and were in the play-off spots in early January.

The 2026/27 season will be Preston's 12th successive season in the second tier of English football, and some might argue that it's time for them to make a serious push for a top eight finish to land in the play-offs.

The club's highest finish since winning the League One play-off final in 2015 was a seventh-place finish in the 2017/18 campaign, with the Lancashire outfit floating in and around mid-table in the majority of seasons following that.

It's a summer of change at Deepdale ahead of the new season, with the likes of Robbie Brady and Will Keane leaving the club when their contracts expire, whilst many of the club's loanees will return to their parent clubs, with no guarantee that any will be able to be signed permanently - even after a proposed takeover from Saudi-American businessman Amr Zedan.

Daniel Jebbison set to sign for Blackburn Rovers with a point to prove

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PNE have had plenty of players over the years that have made a considerable impact in their time with the club, and the Lilywhites supporters will be hoping they can find another hidden gem heading into the new Championship season.

One player that won't be returning to Deepdale from their loan spell with the club last term is Daniel Jebbison, who made 40 appearances in total for the Lancashire-based side.

He scored six goals in his time with North End, and despite that not being the most eye-opening goal tally, there were certain games where the Canadian striker led the line expertly with his pace and strength, although he wasn't very consistent.

The forward has made 21 first-team appearances for parent club, AFC Bournemouth, but has found regular minutes with the Cherries tough to find in recent years, which has resulted in him being sent out on loan to second-tier clubs.

He's still contract with Bournemouth, but it doesn't seem likely that he'll be required for them ahead of the new Premier League season, which gets underway in August.

Will Daniel Jebbison come back to haunt Preston? Blackburn Rovers have made their move

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There's not much more frustrating for a football supporter than seeing a former player return to where they used to play, and score with their new team.

Preston will be hoping that this isn't the case with Daniel Jebbison, as the forward is set to join Lancashire rivals Blackburn Rovers according to journalist, Alan Nixon.

There will also be an option to buy in the deal for the 22-year-old, which almost renders his time at Bournemouth done, and despite not being prolific in the early stages of his career, Jebbison's potential could still be unlocked - and perhaps Tony Mowbray is the man to do it.

Despite finishing six places below PNE and eight points behind them, Blackburn did the double over their county neighbours in the 2025/26 season, and the Deepdale faithful will be eager to see their side get one over their rivals heading into the new league campaign.

There will now of course though be some sort of fear amongst the North End fanbase that Jebbison could come back to haunt his former club - whilst not a consistent goal threat, Jebbison can still cause a defence problems when he's having an on day, and so they'll have to be on their guard when the forward returns to his former club later this year, should the deal go through.

Blackburn could end up making a shrewd move in signing the striker, who started his senior career with Sheffield United, before moving to Bournemouth in 2024, but PNE manager Paul Heckingbottom - who handed Jebbison his senior debut as a 17-year-old for Sheffield United - will be left watching hoping he does not regret snubbing a renewed move for his services.

Regardless of how Jebbison performs for his potential new club, Preston can't afford to dwell on what could have been, and they simply must act fast in adding further reinforcements to their team ahead of the new Championship campaign.