Preston have gone five games without winning
Portsmouth have drawn four of their last eight Championship fixtures
Recommended bet: Draw
Preston ended a sequence of four defeats with last Saturday’s superb 1-1 draw at Ipswich and they will be pushing for a return to winning ways when taking on lowly Portsmouth at Deepdale on Saturday.
Paul Heckingbottom’s side headed to Ipswich with little outside expectation but were competitive from the first whistle and looked on course for a shock victory until the scores were levelled by Jack Clarke’s injury-time penalty.
North End were slightly aggrieved at the late spot-kick decision, but their performance was a massive step forward from the 4-0 reverse at Middlesbrough on the previous weekend.
And, having faced two of their most difficult fixtures of the campaign, Preston will be keen to get on the front foot against a Portsmouth side which has been at the lower end of the table for much of the campaign.
Pompey came through a survival battle in the closing weeks of last season and will be hoping to avoid a similarly nailbiting conclusion.
They have shown improvement in recent weeks and are heading to Lancashire on a four-game unbeaten run.
The latest Preston vs Portsmouth odds are available on LiveScore Bet
Team news
Daniel Iversen has missed the last four matches while Brad Potts and Andrew Hughes are also out of contention.
Jordan Storey is available after a suspension but Robbie Brady and Callum Lang will not be involved.
Portsmouth’s busy treatment room includes Conor Shaughnessy, Thomas Waddingham, Harvey Blair, Josh Murphy, Franco Umeh, Hayden Matthews, Mark Kosznovszky, Florian Bianchini and Josh Knight.
Deadline-day additions Madiodio Dia and Gustavo Caballero will be hoping to be involved.
The stats
Preston have failed to score in four of their last five matches.
All of Preston’s last nine home games have featured less than four goals.
Portsmouth have started the scoring in four of their last five fixtures.
Four of Portsmouth’s last five away games have featured less than three goals.
Pompey have lost one of their last nine matches.
The latest Preston vs Portsmouth odds are available on LiveScore Bet
Prediction
Preston delivered an excellent backs-to-the-wall performance in last Saturday’s 1-1 draw at Ipswich, but they have won just one of their last eight home fixtures and could be held by Portsmouth in a physical encounter.
North End prefer a counter-attacking approach and have the fifth-lowest average possession share (44.8%) in the division.
They can struggle to open up disciplined defences and are unlikely to get an easy ride from Pompey, who secured a well-deserved 1-1 draw at Watford on their last road trip.
Portsmouth have been battling on despite a long list of injuries and they can add another point in their quest to stay in the division.
Back the draw at 2/1 with LiveScore Bet
The latest Preston vs Portsmouth odds are available on LiveScore Bet
