Manchester City striker Nmecha joins Preston on loan

England Under-21s striker Lukas Nmecha has joined Preston North End on loan after scoring 15 goals for Manchester City Under-23s in 2017-18.

The 19-year-old made two Premier League appearances for the champions last season and is highly rated at the club but he said North End manager Alex Neil played a key role in convincing him to spend a season at Deepdale.

The German-born attacker, who has spent more than a decade moving up through the youth ranks at Eastlands, could feature for Preston when they play Swansea City on Saturday.

He told Preston’s official website: “Alex Neil has been a big part of my decision to sign.

“He is very passionate about the game and I am excited by the style of play that the club have been playing.

“This season we can go a long way. We play great football and I am here to add goals to the team. I am here to develop and give the club the best I can.”

Latest signing Lukas Nmecha will wear the No.45 shirt at Deepdale this season. #pnefc pic.twitter.com/V8iVakzbTg

— Preston North End FC (@pnefc) August 9, 2018

Neil backed Nmecha to make a big impact in his side, saying: “We have been targeting this for a while now. I believe we have signed one of the brightest centre-forwards in the country at his age group.

“Manchester City have got really high hopes for him. He has spent the last six months training with their first team and we have managed to persuade him that the next stage of his development is to come and play for Preston North End.

“I think it a huge compliment of what we are trying to do and hopefully this will be a mutually beneficial move for both parties.”