The Robins certainly came out on top when it came to their dealings with North End regarding Josh Brownhill.
Josh Brownhill faced difficult times after being passed over by Manchester United at the age of 16 and not receiving a scholarship offer from the team.
Thankfully, though, the youthful midfield player found a new team in Preston North End and made the most of this second chance despite being “heartbroken.”
Josh Brownhill’s Preston breakthrough
The young midfielder’s career was about to take off, and he would go on to have his breakout season with the team in 2013–14, making a total of 30 appearances in all competitions that season. He followed this up with another 28 the next season.
However, things became tougher when Preston was promoted to the Championship during Brownhill’s second full season. As a result, the young player struggled to get game time throughout the first half of the 2015–16 campaign.
Brownhill was then sent on loan to Barnsley in League One. The player went on to make 26 appearances across all competitions, aiding the team’s play-off run to the Championship.
In addition to starting and participating for 90 minutes in all three play-off matches, Brownhill had also contributed an assist and a goal in the first and second leg ties against Walsall.
However, his contract was about to expire that summer, and his performances had drawn interest from rival clubs.
Brownhill joins Bristol City
Among those teams was Bristol City, which ultimately acquired Brownhill on what would have been a free transfer in the summer of 2016. Nevertheless, Bristol City would have had to pay a compensation fee because of Brownhill’s advanced age and the rumoured offer of a new contract from Preston.
What this charge actually amounted to is unknown to us. Whatever the case may have been, Bristol City made a wonderful acquisition in signing the guy.
Unlike his stint with Preston in the Championship, Brownhill was able to play a lot of second-tier football at Bristol City. In his rookie season, he started most of the Robins’ games and collected 27 second-tier goals.
But Brownhill was going to make his true breakthrough performances in the next two seasons. He would not only stay in top form for two straight league seasons, playing 45 games in 2017–18 and 2018–19, but he had also developed a talent for both goal-scoring and goal-creating, with nine direct goal contributions in each of those previous campaigns.
Robins net £9 million
Brownhill’s excellent form carried over into 2019–20; in fact, Burnley, managed by Sean Dyche, made an approach in January. It is said that the Clarets paid £9 million for his signature in that particular month.
The eight-figure purchase demonstrated how much Brownhill had progressed during his time at Ashton Gate and represented a solid profit, especially considering that Brownhill had been signed for a compensation fee years earlier.
In the end, Preston North End’s choice to let Brownhill go when they had the chance will always go in the Deepdale “ones that got away” file.
Josh Brownhill not only performed well for the Robins on the pitch, but when it came time for him to return, he also scored a healthy return for the team, which made letting him depart the club much easier.\
Having gone on to prove himself as a top Championship/bottom half Premier League player, it will certainly be interesting to see where Brownhill’s career goes from here.
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