Bradford City give Preston permission to speak to Graham Alexander

Preston turn to former player Graham Alexander

Bradford City have reluctantly given Preston North End permission to speak to manager Graham Alexander about the Championship club’s vacant managerial position.

Graham Alexander during his time as Bradford City manager

“Bradford City AFC can confirm we have been approached by Preston North End to speak to Graham Alexander regarding the Championship side’s managerial vacancy,” Bradford said in a statement. “Reluctantly, Bradford City has granted permission for Graham to speak to Preston North End.”

Preston dismissed Paul Heckingbottom earlier this month after six defeats in their opening seven league matches. BBC Radio Lancashire reports that Alexander is one of the final two candidates under consideration.

Alexander’s strong start at Bradford

The 54-year-old took charge at Valley Parade in November 2023 and led Bradford to promotion from League Two during his first full season. The Bantams finished fourth in League One in 2025-26 before losing to Bolton Wanderers in the play-offs.

Bradford are currently top of League One, having won five of their first seven matches. Alexander has won 79 of his 158 games in charge, giving him a 50% win ratio, and remains under contract until the end of next season.

Deep Preston connections

Alexander has strong links with Preston, having spent two spells at Deepdale as a player and made 372 league appearances for the club. He also had a five-game caretaker spell in charge during the 2011-12 season before ending his playing career with Preston at the age of 40.

The former Scotland international has also managed Fleetwood, Scunthorpe, Salford, Motherwell and MK Dons. Preston are second bottom of the Championship with four points from eight matches and will host Millwall on Saturday, 10 October, after the international break.