QPR, Millwall and Watford rival's manager leaves Championship club after torrid season opener

The Championship manager merry-go-round has taken just days to spin into action this season as QPR, Watford and Millwall rivals Preston North End part ways with Ryan Lowe.

The Lilywhites confirmed the news on Monday morning, having suffered a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Sheffield United on Friday night. The club sit 23rd in the division at this early stage and finished 10th in the second tier last term.

A Preston statement said: "Following discussions that took place on Sunday 11th August, it was mutually agreed that now was an appropriate time for a change to be made."

Oliver Arblaster and Gustavo Hamer were on target for the Blades in that meeting at Deepdale on Friday evening as Chris Wilder's side settled back into Championship life. Speaking after the game, Lowe said: “I thought we had real impetus and were on top. The decision Fred has made, it is a genuine mistake. I thought he was fantastic all game - his distribution was brilliant and there is no blame culture here, from us.

"We are in this together and Fred is disappointed in there. I think he reacted to the noise for us to go quickly and he hasn’t seen Hamer - a quality player like that can punish you. Overall, they had three shots on target I think and two went in.

“We knew what we were coming up against, we just felt we could be better in possession, not turn the ball over as much and be more fluent at the top end. I think we had 11 shots, but only two on target, so we need more. We had some good moments and you are coming up against a quality opposition and manager - who knows the league inside out. We knew it was going to be tough. At two-nil, it is hard to recover."

Former Liverpool and West Ham man Mike Marsh will take charge of Preston North End for the Carabao Cup meeting against Sunderland on Tuesday and this weekend's Championship visit to Swansea City. He will be aided by Peter Murphy and Ched Evans.

Lowe has previously been in charge at Bury, where he finished his playing career, as well as Plymouth Argyle. He was appointed by the Lilywhites in December 2021.