Paul Heckingbottom fumes at Milutin Osmajic as a headbutt sparks quite the brawl in Hull’s 3-0 win at Preston on Tuesday night.
Goals from Liam Millar (33′, Akin Famewo (45′), and Oli McBurnie (49′) sees Sergej Jakirovic’s side pick up a a third straight win, going three points off 2nd place, now in 4th. Meanwhile for Preston, they suffered back-to-back home defeats, as risk of dropping out of the top six.
But it was a chaotic end to the Championship fixture, when Preston’s Milutin Osmajic was sent off by referee Steve Martin for a headbutt on Hull’s John Lundstram. This led to heated scenes, involving players and staff, leading to two more red cards, Preston coach Peter Murphy and Hull’s goalkeeping coach.
Osmajic, had only just come back from a nine-match ban (and a fined £21,000) for racial abuse towards Burnley’s Hannibal Mejbri, but now faces at least a three-game suspension for the red card. That also came following another 8 game ban which Osmajic received in October 2024 after admitting to biting Blackburn loanee Owen Beck.
🚨Osmajic head loss. Hull player makes the most of it but this simply can’t keep happening.
Where do we even go from here with him? #pnefc pic.twitter.com/HuWB5S0zui
— North End Podcast (@nepdailypod) January 20, 2026
Paul Heckingbottom said, per Lancashire Post: “It’s a sending off, Steve’s got no choice. Yeah, he has (let us all down). He’s not cost us a game, but we’ve got three big games coming up when we’re a striker down.
“A lack of discipline is totally unacceptable. In my time here, if he gets three games for that, that’d be 20 games missed. They are different issues, don’t get me wrong, but sending off for a tackle or something is a lot different. He’s not learned his lesson.
“The issues are totally unconnected in terms of football, aren’t they? But we are professional people, footballers and there’s a way to act. Regardless if that’s a tackle on the pitch, discipline away from it, training ground, there’s a way to be professional.”
“Whatever’s there shouldn’t be there,” said Heckingbottom. “It’s different isn’t it? If that’s part of your personal make-up and you’re a big strapping centre-forward who smashes people about on the pitch and you play physically, you tend to get in bother. But I don’t see that as a player, do you get what I mean?
“He’s not dominating centre-backs physically and that’s the disappointing thing. If you are getting sent off for those type of things that’s helping you in games, as a manager, coach, it’s part of the game and it’s a decision for the referee, what they deem yellow cards, red cards.
“If you’re making genuine physical attempts, whether they’re deemed aggressive or not, because you want to win… but that’s not. The game’s dead and he’s fallen for it. Lunny’s grabbed him, they are 3-0 up, they can do what they want and he’s fallen for it. That happens all the time doesn’t it? Loads of people don’t react.”
On what happened in the dugout: “One of their guys in our technical area, that’s what started it. I don’t think anything happened, but he’s just sent one off from each side. I don’t know who it was on their team, just the guy who was in our technical area. He could’ve picked anyone and sent anyone off.”
Hecky’s post-match reaction. 💬#pnefc pic.twitter.com/B9ObMQs0nZ
— Preston North End FC (@pnefc) January 20, 2026
Here’s how fans reacted after Paul Heckingbottom fumes at Milutin Osmajic as a headbutt sparks quite the brawl in Hull’s win at Preston…
@PNEFansForum: Osmajic has been backed by the club and its fans when at his lowest… this is a complete slap in the face. #pnefc
@MrLongsider: Embarrassment of a player, any decent club would sack him immediately!!!
@FixingFootball: This guy is a lunatic. #PNE fans should realise he’s too much of a liability and not worth the hassle. Just cancel his contract.
@JTayF1: Whenever I hear about this bloke it’s always cos of something mental, shouldn’t be let near a football pitch ffs
@Jordan_B97: He’s been banned for biting a player, racially abusing another and now head butting someone. He’s dragging the clubs name through the mud, get rid!!!!
@PR4PNE: Couldn’t give a fuck if he’s our best striker, Osmajic needs to be sold. Blokes a fucking idiot and a huge liability #pnefc
@prestonian1979: He has to go. He should have gone when he got the racism ban. Hes clearly not learning from his mistakes and we can’t keep defending him. Rip up his contract. Gross misconduct.
@Katie_Cronin: Enough is enough. These men are people my kids look up to. We can’t condone repeated violence.
@catterallwhite: Felt personally let down by Osmajic, as will many North End fans who backed him despite past issues. #pnefc can’t afford a player missing 20 games in 2 years through suspension. It wasn’t instinctive – it happened in slow motion. Enough is enough.
@Rhigallimorexo: How can Preston fans actually defend this guy 🥴
@adam_alcock: Get out of my club @pnefc Milutin Osmajić. We’ve stuck by you, but that’s utterly embarrassing. Sell tomorrow.
@RichardR_92: Nah fuck him off. Osmajic man. #pnefc
@Budgierustler34: OSMAJIC: With regret, I feel his contract should be terminated with immediate effect. The over-riding reason being he has brought the name of Preston North End Football Club into disrepute. #pnefc
@deano733: Does that fucker ever learn man 😅😅
@_leahhession_: He’s nearly as embarrassing as our club
@louise_pne: Thought he’d learnt his lesson but clearly not. Surely no way back this time. What a sorry mess.
@JackGoodwin2001: Unacceptable. This will now be a minimum of 21 games that he will suspended for after 2.5 years at PNE. Preston North End is a club that represents their community well on a lot of aspects but children can’t continue to come on and look up to a character like this. #pnefc
Not arguing with when he says “not tonight lads”. 😂
— North End Podcast (@nepdailypod) January 20, 2026
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