Preston North End welcome Bristol City to Deepdale on Saturday afternoon looking to build on their excellent win at West Bromwich Albion earlier this week.
However, just three points separate these two teams in the Championship standings, leaving Bristol City with a chance to move towards the mid-table positions.
Match preview
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Having won his opening two matches in charge of Preston, recently-appointed boss Ryan Lowe would not have envisaged the subsequent four-game period without success.
However, after witnessing his team succumb to a 1-0 defeat to Swansea City in South Wales, North End produced one of their best performances of the season to see off promotion-chasing West Bromwich Albion on away territory.
Lowe' side were full value for their 2-0 victory at The Hawthorns, Emil Riis Jakobsen's 10th goal of the season being followed by a debut effort from Aston Villa loanee Cameron Archer.
Although they sit down in 13th position and remain eight points adrift of the playoffs, there is a feeling that a couple more shrewd additions could help Preston launch an unlikely promotion bid.
That said, their form at Deepdale must improve over the coming months, with their current four-game unbeaten run featuring three draws.
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Bristol City have been at their erratic best over the last two games, a thrilling 3-2 victory over Cardiff City being followed by defeat at Luton Town three days later.
Despite the jubilation which occurred after beating the Bluebirds, the Robins now have the third worst defensive record in the division, a consequence of conceding 18 goals in their last seven league games.
Although they have accumulated six points from as many fixtures, four defeats have also been recorded during that period, and Nigel Pearson can ill-afford a similar run against sides in the bottom half of the table.
On a positive note, Andreas Weimann has netted seven times in just six league games, taking his tally to 14 for the campaign.
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Team News
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Despite the quick turnaround, Lowe will almost certainly look to select the same Preston XI which started at West Brom on Wednesday night.
That would see Archer remain among the replacements and Ryan Ledson retaining his place in the middle of the pitch, allowing Alan Browne to play slightly further forward.
Given the clubs' ongoing injury issues, Pearson is unlikely to make many alterations to the Bristol City side which went down at Luton.
Joe Williams, who made his first appearance in two months off the substitutes' bench, and Ayman Benarous are both options in midfield if Pearson opts for a fresh face.
Danny Simpson may also be considered for a start at right wing-back, but the likes of George Tanner, Matty James and Andy King are all expected to remain sidelined.
Preston North End possible starting lineup:
Iversen; Van den Berg, Bauer, Hughes; Potts, Ledson, Whiteman, Cunningham; Browne; Riis Jakobsen, Evans
Bristol City possible starting lineup:
O'Leary; Vyner, Kalas, Pring; Dasilva, Massengo, Scott, O'Dowda; Weimann; Semenyo, Martin
We say: Preston North End 2-1 Bristol City
Given their respective inconsistencies, all three results was realistically possible at the weekend. Nevertheless, we feel inclined to back the home side, who have the momentum after their victory at The Hawthorns.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Preston North End win with a probability of 55.09%. A draw had a probability of 23.9% and a win for Bristol City had a probability of 20.98%.
The most likely scoreline for a Preston North End win was 1-0 with a probability of 11.92%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (10.18%) and 2-1 (9.71%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (11.37%), while for a Bristol City win it was 0-1 (6.67%). The actual scoreline of 2-2 was predicted with a 4.6% likelihood.
