Preview: Preston North End vs. Fulham - prediction, team news, lineups

Preston North End will look to keep up with the playoff spots when they meet promotion candidates Fulham in the Championship at Deepdale on Tuesday.

The home side find themselves one point off the playoff positions following a 2-0 defeat to Queen's Park Rangers, while Fulham will be desperate to recover from a shock 2-1 home loss to Bristol City.

Match preview

Under Alex Neil, Preston have discovered a level of performance that was unheard of at the club during its period in League One between 2011 and 2015.

The Lancashire side started the season impressively, winning five of their opening eight fixtures, which took them to third in the table and forced people to consider them for promotion.

However, the loss to QPR serves as the club's fourth straight defeat - a run including a 4-0 humbling at the hands of Hull City - and threatens to kill their early-season momentum completely.

Indeed, as any Championship follower will knows, getting over a slump in form can be extremely difficult - especially in a Christmas period during which games come thick and fast.

The meeting with a vengeful Fulham side, therefore, could either become an enormous galvanising influence or push Preston deeper into their current quagmire.

Following a run of four straight victories, the defeat at home to Bristol came as a shock to the Cottagers, who are looking to bounce straight back into the Premier League after suffering relegation last season.

Under former midfielder Scott Parker, who took over in late February, the West London aide are certainly building something promising after learning several lessons from last season's poor campaign in the top flight.

There is a core group of players - including the likes of Alfie Mawson, Tom Cairney, Anthony Knockaert - with strong experience of this division who can become the foundation for more consistent performances as Fulham continue to develop under Parker.

Moreover, they are blessed with the excellent form of Aleksandar Mitrovic, who has 15 goals in the Championship this season and whose qualities would not look out of place in most Premier League sides.

Against a Preston team currently experiencing a poor patch of form, Mitrovic and the rest will view Tuesday's game as a perfect opportunity to make a return to winning ways.

Recent Preston North End form: WWLLLL Recent Fulham form: LWWWWL

Team News

Preston head into this game with no injury problems, enabling Neil to use Tom Barkhuizen, whose performances both out wide and down the middle have impressed so far this season.

Fulham, on the other hand, may be able to recall the services of Harry Arter, who has been sidelined for over a month.

Maxime Le Marchand is another player who could make a surprise return to action after suffering an unknown injury in early November.

Bobby Reid, however, is definitely out due to a hamstring problem suffered against Derby County last week.

Preston North End possible starting lineup: Rudd; Rafferty, Huntington, Storey, Hughes; Pearson, Browne; Barkhuizen, Potts, Maguire; Stockley

Fulham possible starting lineup: Rodak; Odoi, Mawson, Ream, Bryan; Johansen, Cairney; Knockaert, Onomah, Kamara; Mitrovic

We say: Preston North End 0-1 Fulham

The visitors will be desperate to right the wrongs of their last display, while Preston find themselves in the middle of a worrying slump. As a result, it is likely that Fulham will dominate proceedings and record a narrow victory.