‘Machine’ - Ryan Lowe’s first impression of Milutin Osmajic upon Preston North End man’s arrival

Preston North End striker Milutin Osmajic steps out of a Millers taxi and is greeted with a hug from manager Ryan Lowe on day one at his new club.

The Montenegro international landed in Birmingham on Wednesday evening and made his way up to Lancashire. Osmajic signed on transfer deadline day from Cadiz, but had to wait for his visa to be finalised before flying over to England. The 24-year-old had been training over in Spain with PNE’s Head of Performance, John Lucas.

Now, the focus is on getting ready for Saturday’s match at Deepdale against Plymouth Argyle. If Osmajic is called upon to feature against the Pilgrims, it will have been a non-stop few days. But, having signed for a club record fee, there is plenty of excitement around his arrival - the North End boss included. Lowe believes the club have found themselves a gem.

“I haven’t had many conversations with him, just the text messages and using the translator at the minute,” said Lowe. “You can see he’s got that smile and that affection. He is going to be a character and one the lads love. You only have to see his celebrations for his goals; it really means a lot to him.

“So, I think he’s absolutely excited to be here and we’re excited to have him. I gave him a hug and he was like a brick wall! He was solid. But, we had all the data on him so we knew the size, the stature, the power and pace of him. We knew all that, but it just ticked all the boxes when John went away with him. He’s done all his body fats, pressures, sizes. He is a machine.”

Lowe had spoken about a ‘buzz’ being around Euxton on Thursday morning, with Osmajic walking through the door and the return of Championship football getting closer. North End have plenty of new faces in the building, having signed eight players in the summer transfer window. There is a fresh feel to camp and it’s one Lowe is liking.

“Yeah, you should see training,” said Lowe. “It’s next level. The lads are all champing at the bit and that’s because the group behind the group are now saying: ‘How do I get in this team?’. It’s being fair, honest and the lads have been excellent - pulling each other through. Even the youngsters have been phenomenal in training.

“Josh Seary, off the top of my head, has been the most improved player in pre-season and during the season now he’s been phenomenal - along with Besty, KT and all the lads who’ve been with us, Felipe, Noah, they’ve been a breath of fresh air. So listen, long may that continue because they all want to get into the team and they are all doing well.”