Preston vs Portsmouth predictions: Draw specialists to strike again
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- Preston's 1-1 draw at Sunderland was their 17th Championship stalemate
- Portsmouth lost 2-1 at home to bottom club Plymouth on Wednesday
- Recommended bet: Draw
Preston have dropped out of the Championship play-off conversation following a six-game league winless run and will not find it easy going at home to a resurgent Portsmouth.
Team news
North End boss Paul Heckingbottom hopes to have top scorer Milutin Osmajic fit as the Montenegro international struggles with a hip problem.
Ben Whiteman is pushing for a first start in two months after recovering from injury though Jack Whatmough, Ali McCann and Mads Frokjaer are still missing.
Portsmouth are dealing with a lengthy injury list with centre-backs Conor Shaughnessy, Rob Atkinson and Hayden Matthews out which means Regan Poole and Marlon Pack are set to resume their makeshift partnership.
Pompey are also missing their exciting 10-goal top scorer Callum Lang.
The stats
Preston have drawn 17 matches in the Championship, the joint-highest number of draws alongside West Brom.
They are without a win in six league games and have scored only five goals in their last eight.
Pompey have won four of their last six matches.
Prediction
Portsmouth fans are rightly scratching their heads at the end of a week in which they have beaten the league's top team, Leeds, 1-0 and, just a few days later, lost to the league's bottom team, Plymouth, 2-1.
Seasoned Championship observers will be less surprised by those results in a division where just about anything is possible.
But John Mousinho's men should still be feeling confident heading to Lancashire to take on Preston having won four of their last six matches to surge clear of relegation danger.
Preston's trajectory is very much in the opposite direction having failed to win in six to drop out of the play-off picture.
Now there are just two points between the sides and that minimal gulf may well be reflected in the final score.
Portsmouth look so much better with Colby Bishop and Matt Ritchie starring, but they still miss Callum Lang and are makeshift in defence.
The Lilywhites are also hit by injuries and could do with captain Ben Whiteman and top scorer Milutin Osmajic starting together again.
There is little between them in the table and, while Pompey are in the better form, North End have had the extra day's rest having drawn 1-1 at Sunderland on Tuesday, 24 hours before Portsmouth had their pockets picked by Plymouth.
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