Preston North End will look to extend their five-game unbeaten run when they welcome Norwich City to Carrow Road on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Norwich City will be aiming to record back-to-back victories after getting the better of Southampton last weekend.
Match preview
Preston are flying high in third place in the Championship table after winning nine, drawing eight and losing four of their 21 league games.
PNE have proven to be a tough team to beat in recent times, having lost just one of their previous 10 matches (W5, D4).
In fact, they have put together a five-game undefeated run since their most recent defeat in November’s Lancashire derby with Preston North End (W2, D3), including a narrow win in last Saturday’s away outing against Oxford United.
Goals from Jordan Storey and Daniel Jebbison proved enough to seal a 2-1 victory at the Kassam Stadium, representing their third victory in their past five road trips (D2).
Paul Heckingbottom’s side will now return home to Deepdale, where they have gone three games without a win since beating Swansea City on November 5.
If they are to end that winless run, PNE will have to record their first home victory over Norwich since running out 3-1 winners in February 2019.
© Imago / IMAGO / Focus Images
Norwich may be languishing in the drop zone, but they have enjoyed a resurgence following the appointment of Philippe Clement.
After losing 4-1 to Birmingham in his first game in charge, Clement has gone on to oversee a promising run of form that has seen Norwich record two wins, two draws and just one defeat in five matches.
The Canaries have taken four points from their last two games, including all the spoils from last Saturday’s home clash against Southampton.
Jovon Makama scored on either side of a Ryan Manning effort to fire Norwich to a 2-1 win at Carrow Road, moving his side to within three points of safety.
After recording a second consecutive home victory, Norwich will head on their travels with hopes of ending their nine-game winless away run (D4, L5).
Perhaps, the visitors can take confidence from the fact that their most recent away win took place in their last trip to Lancashire in August, when Josh Sargent netted a brace in a 2-0 success against Blackburn Rovers.
Preston North End Championship form:
L D W D D W
Norwich City Championship form:
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Team News
© Imago / Pro Sports Images
Preston remain without the services of Lewis Gibson, Jamal Lewis, Ali McCann, Robbie Brady and the suspended Milutin Osmajic.
Defender Liam Lindsay is set to return to the backline after missing the narrow win over Oxford through suspension.
Jebbison will be looking to continue his fine form in front of goal after scoring three times in the past five matches, including a goal in each of the last two games.
As for the visitors, they are expected to be without Lucien Mahovo, Gabriel Forsyth, Jeffrey Schlupp, Mirko Topic, Papa Amadou Diallo and Ante Crnac.
Norwich’s top scorer, Sargent, missed the win over Southampton with concussion, and it remains to be seen whether he will be able to return for Saturday’s fixture.
If Sargent is unable to feature, Clement could decide to stick with the same lineup that started last Saturday’s 2-1 victory.
Preston North End possible starting lineup:
Iversen; Storey, Lindsay, Hughes; Offiah, Armstrong, Devine, Small; Whiteman; Dobbin, Jebbison
Norwich City possible starting lineup:
Kovacevic; Fisher, McConville, Darling, Chrisene; Mattsson, McLean; Forson, Wright, Schwartau, Makama
We say: Preston North End 1-1 Norwich City
Preston have made themselves a tough team to beat over the last two months, but they have failed to win any of their previous three home matches, and with that in mind, we think they will be held to a point by a rejuvenated Norwich side.
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