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In a clash of two struggling teams, Preston North End host Derby County at the Deepdale Stadium on Saturday in the EFL Championship.
The Lilywhites are 18th in the league standings with only two wins and 11 points from 11 games and winless in their last six league games. Since their emphatic 3-1 comeback victory over Swansea City on 28 August, the side have gone off the boil.
The Rams have performed comparatively better with three wins and five draws from 11 games. But a deduction of 12 points by the league's governing body has relegated them to the bottom of the table.
Wayne Rooney's side filed a notice to appoint administrators last week amid a financial crisis, but the Championship was quick to impose a strict penalty.
This comes at a time when the club is already going through a transfer embargo, compounding their misery further.
Preston North End vs Derby County Head-To-Head
There have been 122 clashes between the sides before, with Preston North End winning 52 times.
Derby County have 47 games over them, but none in their last three encounters.
Preston North End Form Guide (all competitions): L-D-D-W-D
Derby County Form Guide (all competitions): D-W-L-W-D
Preston North End vs Derby County Team News
Preston North End
The Lilywhites have quite a few casualties ahead of the clash.
Ali McCann is ruled out with an ankle injury that he suffered against QPR before the international break, while Ched Evans is nursing a foot injury.
Matthew Olosunde is back in training but remains doubtful for the clash.
Sean Maguire will be assessed before the clash and should he be ruled out too, then Scott Sinclair is waiting in the wings to come into his place.
Injured: Ali McCann, Ched Evans
Doubtful: Matthew Olosunde, Sean Maguire
Suspended: None
Unavailable: None
Derby County
Nathan Byrne is suspended from the clash for accumulation of cards. It could open up an opportunity for Festy Ebosele to come in at right-back should manager Wayne Rooney opt to retain a back-four.
Colin Kazim-Richards is close to a return but this match might have come too soon for him.
But on the bright side, Sam Baldock and Phil Jagielka have recovered from their injuries and could hence feature in the squad.
Injured: Colin Kazim-Richards
Suspended: Nathan Byrne
Unavailable: None
Preston North End vs Derby County Predicted XI
Preston North End (3-4-1-2): Daniel Iversen; Jordan Storey, Patrick Bauer, Greg Cunningham; Sepp van den Berg, Alan Browne, Ryan Ledson, Josh Earl; Daniel Johnson; Emil Riis Jakobsen, Scott Sinclair.
Derby County (4-2-3-1): Ryan Allsop; Festy Ebosele, Phil Jagielka, Curtis Davies, Craig Forsyth; Max Bird, Graeme Shinnie; Jason Knight, Ravel Morrison, Tom Lawrence; Sam Baldock.
Preston North End vs Derby County Prediction
Both teams have struggled to put up victories so don't expect fireworks here.
Preston are among the draw specialists in the league with five of their 11 games ending in a stalemate, while Derby have been poor on the road.
All signs point to a low-scoring (or even goalless) stalemate.
Prediction: Preston North End 1-1 Derby County
