Preston North End will hope to maintain their slim hopes of securing a promotion playoff spot alive when they host Swansea City on Tuesday at Deepdale in the Championship.
The home side are 15th in the table with 42 points and are 10 points and nine places from a playoff spot but they do boast a game in hand on sixth-placed West Bromwich Albion, while Swansea are 16th with 40 points and beat Blackburn Rovers 3-0 on February 22.
Match preview
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Preston come into the clash having lost 2-1 against Frank Lampard‘s Coventry City on February 22, and they can have few complaints with the result given 0.9 of their 0.93 xG was produced in the 82nd minute or later when they were already trailing 2-0.
Goalscoring has been an issue for the hosts this season considering they have scored just twice in their last two league games, and have scored one or fewer goals in 18 of their 22 most recent Championship matches.
To his credit, boss Paul Heckingbottom did oversee a 3-0 win against Burnley in the FA Cup on Saturday, becoming the first team to score against the Clarets in 10 games and progressing to the quarter-finals.
The Lilywhites are winless in three outings in the second tier – drawing two and losing one – but they have only been beaten in two of their last 12 fixtures in all competitions, winning six in that time.
Preston have also proven to be a formidable force at Deepdale given the club are undefeated in their past 13 at home, with their six victories in that period coming in their last nine.
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The visitors were rampant against Blackburn, creating seven big chances and over two xG, all while limiting their opponents to just 0.23 xG.
Interim boss Alan Sheehan took charge of the Swans against the Riversiders following the dismissal of head coach Luke Williams, who was sacked five days previously following a run of eight defeats in 10 games.
It should be noted that Swansea scored as many goals against Blackburn as they managed to score in their prior five matches, failing to find the back of the net in five of their past 11 games.
Sheehan’s side emerged as 3-0 victors against their hosts in the reverse fixture on August 17, a match in which Preston only created one big chance and generated just two shots on target.
Swansea have been beaten in six of their seven most recent games, conceding 20 times while scoring four goals in that period.
Team News
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Preston midfielder Ben Whiteman will be sidelined until the middle of the month, while attacking midfielder Duane Holmes has also been ruled out, so perhaps Ryan Ledson, Stefan Teitur Thordarson and Alistari McCann will feature in the middle of the pitch on Tuesday.
Ryan Porteous, Lewis Gibson and Andrew Hughes may start in a back three given Jack Whatmough and Jordan Storey are unavailable due to injury.
Forward Mads Frokjaer-Jensen is a doubt, and his absence could make Sam Greenwood and Milutin Osmajic the most likely candidates to partner each other up front.
The visitors’ injury list is not extensive, but they will still be without midfielder Joe Allen and centre-back Kristian Pedersen until the middle of March.
Sheehan could field a similar starting XI to the side that beat Blackburn, so expect Goncalo Franco and Lewis O’Brien to be stationed in a double pivot.
In defence, Ben Cabango and Harry Darling were positioned in front of goalkeeper Lawrence Vigouroux against Blackburn, and they are likely to appear together on Tuesday.
Preston North End possible starting lineup:
Woodman; Porteous, Gibson, Hughes; Kesler-Hayden, Ledson, Thordarson, McCann, Meghoma; Greenwood, Osmajic
Swansea City possible starting lineup:
Vigouroux; Key, Cabango, Darling, Tymon; Franco, O’Brien; Ronald, Cullen, Peart-Harris; Vipotnik
We say: Preston North End 2-1 Swansea City
Swansea will come into the match full of confidence following their win under interim head coach Sheehan, and they may even take the lead.
However, it would be surprising if they emerged victorious given their poor away record, and Preston should be seen as favourites considering their strong form at home.
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