Preston North End's Jordan Storey stance after defender's Sheffield Wednesday loan

Former Sheffield Wednesday loanee Jordan Storey is part of Ryan Lowe’s plans at Preston North End next season. The 24-year-old was loaned out to the Owls just weeks into Lowe’s reign in January after he found himself playing second string to Sepp van den Berg.

Storey became integral as Wednesday embarked on a stratospheric rise to the League One play-offs with 14 victories from their final 21 league matches.

He registered eight clean sheets for the Owls although the season ended in disappointment when they were defeated by Sunderland in the play-off semi-finals.

But with van den Berg returning to his parent club Liverpool, coupled with Storey’s impressive performances at Hillsborough, Lowe is prepared to welcome him back into the fold at Deepdale.

“The lads at the back are fine,” Lowe told LancsLive. “I am quite content with them, providing they do what we ask them to do. Bambo [Diaby] and Jordan [Storey] will probably fight it out for that right sided slot.

“Liam Lindsay and Patrick Bauer will fight it out for the middle one, and Greg Cunningham and Andrew Hughes will probably fight it out for the left one.”

With Storey unavailable on the market, Darren Moore has shrewdly replaced him with Michael Ihiekwe and Ben Heneghan from Rotherham United and AFC Wimbledon respectively.

Ihiekwe, in particular, was a real coup for the club, as he signed from local rivals Rotherham United. The 29-year-old was named in the League One team of the year in 2021-22 and achieved three promotions with the Millers, including last season.