Preston is 'a very special place' - Small

Preston North End defender Thierry Small says the Championship club is "a very special place" after their strong start to the new season.

The 21-year-old moved from Charlton Athletic in the summer, and Saturday's goal against his former club was his second in two matches.

"Preston's a very good club, very special people, and you can see on the pitch that we've got a togetherness we just want to keep building on," he told BBC Radio Lancashire

The Whites have moved into the play-off places with 16 points from nine matches, and Small says previous friendships are helping.

"It's a nice surprise to see a lot of familiar faces, especially Lewis Dobbin, Harrison Armstrong," he added.

"I've known them since I was a young boy. When we used to do school release with Everton we always used to come across each other."

'I'm just happy that my hard work is paying off'

Small left Everton's youth set-up aged 17, signing for Southampton, but never played for them. He then had spells on loan at Port Vale and St Mirren before joining Charlton in 2024 where he made 62 appearances.

"Its not been an easy journey for me so far. It's still very early on in my career. I've always been resilient, I've always looked to work hard, get my head down and do all the right things," he said.

"I'm just happy that my hard work is paying off and for me it's not getting carried away and doing all the things that got me to this point."

Small's fine form has been rewarded with a call-up to the England Under-21 squad to play away in Moldova and at home to Andorra.

"I love it. The standard of players is incredible. You're playing with Premier League players, its always good to challenge myself," he said.

"Sometimes you see the senior players which is really motivating."