Preston North End could face their former defender Ben Davies in the visit to Sheffield United

After three defeats and two draws since their relegation from the Premier League in May, the Blades beat Peterborough 6-2 on Saturday.

So it’s up to Preston North End to stop them building any momentum when they make the trip to Bramall Lane on Tuesday night (7.45pm).

Iliam Ndiaye (2), Ben Osborn (2), John Fleck and Marc Gibbs-White did the damage against Posh.

Missing from the Blades squad on Saturday was ex-PNE defender Ben Davies, a foot injury ruling him out.

But the 26-year-old is likely to be fit to face North End.

Davies is on loan at United for the season from Liverpool, with him not having played for the Reds since February’s £1.6m move from North End.

Lilywhites head coach Frankie McAvoy said: “Ben’s time here was very good and people should be mindful of that. He was excellent for Alex Neil and myself.

“Ben is very good on the ball, quick, covers areas well. I was not surprised when he got signed by a bigger club.

“I won’t reminisce too much because he’s not our player now. I want to concentrate on the guys we have got in the building at the moment.”

Davies came through the youth system at North End, breaking into the first-team squad at the age of 17.

He then had a series of loans before Alex Neil brought him into the defence at the start of the 2017/18 season. He never looked back from there earning the reputation of being one of the Championship's best defenders.

In January he was on the verge of signing a pre-contract agreement to join Celtic before Liverpool swooped for him at the end of the winter window.

It's a move which hasn't gone as Davies would have hoped. He was the bench a few times last season without getting on to the pitch and Liverpool chose to loan him out in the summer to get him regular football.

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