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Preston North End play host to Nottingham Forest at Deepdale on Saturday as the action continues in the EFL Championship.
Preston are sitting in 11th spot while Nottingham Forest have struggled throughout the campaign and are just one spot above the Championship’s drop zone.
Despite their respective struggles, both teams are unbeaten in recent matches, making for an interesting clash on Saturday.
Preston North End vs Nottingham Forest Head-to-Head
Preston have enjoyed an excellent December, winning six of their eight matches during the month. They’re currently on a three-game winning streak, defeating Bristol City, Derby County and Coventry City without conceding a goal.
Interestingly, Preston have had no issues scoring goals this season, as they’ve already hit 30. However, they’ve struggled defensively – conceding 30 goals to earn a goal difference of zero.
Nottingham Forest, meanwhile, have seen a slight upturn in fortunes since they replaced boss Sabri Lamouchi with Chris Hughton in early October. A total of 11 losses this season still has them in trouble, but they’re now unbeaten in their last four matches.
Overall though, Forest have struggled for wins throughout 2020-21. They’ve only got four to their name this season, the most recent one coming over fellow strugglers Sheffield Wednesday.
Interestingly, the last three matches between these sides have ended in draws, with the most recent being this past July.
Preston North End form guide: L-L-W-W-W
Nottingham Forest form guide: L-W-D-D-D
Preston North End vs Nottingham Forest Team News
Preston North End
Preston have a number of injury concerns right now, with four players ruled out for this game with serious injuries.
Patrick Bauer has been ruled out for the entire season with an Achilles injury. Scott Sinclair, Ben Pearson and Billy Bodin are all out until mid-January. Louis Moult is also a doubt for this clash.
Injured: Patrick Bauer, Scott Sinclair, Ben Pearson, Billy Bodin
Doubtful: Louis Moult
Suspended: None
Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest also have a handful of injuries to deal with coming into this match. Scott McKenna and Luke Freeman have been ruled out with an ankle and groin injury respectively, while Jack Colback is a doubt after suffering a knock.
Injured: Scott McKenna, Luke Freeman
Doubtful: Jack Colback
Suspended: None
Preston North End vs Nottingham Forest Predicted XI
Preston North End predicted XI (3-4-1-2): Declan Rudd, Paul Huntington, Ben Davies, Andrew Hughes, Darnell Fisher, Alan Browne, Paul Gallagher, Emil Riis Jakobsen, Daniel Johnson, Tom Barkhuizen, Sean Maguire
Nottingham Forest predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Brice Samba, Cyrus Christie, Tobias Figueiredo, Joe Worrall, Yuri Ribeiro, Ryan Yates, Samba Sow, Anthony Knockaert, Cafu, Joe Lolley, Lewis Grabban
Preston North End vs Nottingham Forest Prediction
Nottingham Forest are a slightly better outfit than their league position suggests, but this should prove to be a tricky match for them.
Preston are in excellent form right now, and although their defence has been poor, they should be able to find a way to score past Hughton’s side. With that in mind, we are expecting a narrow home victory for Preston North End.
Prediction: Preston North End 2-1 Nottingham Forest
