Stoke City, currently in mid-table, will face relegation-threatened Preston North End on Tuesday evening for a matchday 17 clash in the 2024-25 Championship season.
The hosts are 12th in the standings with 20 points from their opening 16 matches, while the visitors are 20th in the table with 16 points from their first 16 games.
Match preview
Since their relegation from the Premier League in 2017-18, Stoke City have struggled in the Championship, with finishes of 16th (2018-19), 15th (2019-20), 14th (2020-21 and 2021-22), 16th (2022-23) and 17th (2023-24).
Last season, the Potters narrowly avoided the relegation zone, finishing just six points clear of 22nd-placed Birmingham City, and they would have hoped to distance themselves further from the drop zone this campaign.
They have endured a mixed beginning to the term in pursuit of those goals, winning five, drawing five and losing six to leave them in 12th place with 20 points, five ahead of the drop zone but also just six behind the playoff places.
Stoke City enter this match on their joint-longest unbeaten run of the season, having secured victories over Derby County (2-1) and Blackburn Rovers (2-0), while drawing 1-1 with both Millwall and Queens Park Rangers in their most recent outings.
Narcis Pelach, appointed in September 2024 after Steven Schumacher's dismissal following just five league matches, will aim to extend Stoke's unbeaten run with a win on Tuesday against a Preston side they have failed to beat in their last seven meetings at the Bet365 Stadium.
As for Preston, they come into this game sitting just a point ahead of the relegation zone in 20th place with 16 points, from three wins, seven draws and six defeats.
That marks an extremely disappointing start to the campaign for Preston, who spent much of last season in playoff contention before collapsing in their final five matches, losing them all by an aggregate score of 11-0, ultimately finishing 10th with 63 points, 10 points adrift of the top six.
After managing only three wins in their first 10 league games, Preston's form has worsened in recent outings, as they now enter this match winless in their last six Championship fixtures, with two losses and four draws.
Paul Heckingbottom will be keen to convert Preston's recent draws into wins as they aim to create some distance from the bottom three, starting with Tuesday's clash against Stoke City.
Team News
The hosts will be without the services of former Preston player Ben Pearson due to a hamstring injury, while Bosun Lawal, Lynden Gooch and Sam Gallagher are all also ruled out until December with injury.
Thomas Cannon is Stoke's top scorer heading into this match, with seven goals in 12 appearances, and the Potters will be looking to the striker to lead them to victory here.
As for the visitors, Ched Evans, Liam Lindsay, Patrick Bauer and Robert Brady are all unlikely to feature due to ongoing injury issues that they are not set to return from until at least December.
Alistair McCann is also ruled out for this match due to an accumulation of yellow cards, having received five bookings in 13 Championship matches this term.
Elsewhere, a similar side to the one that drew 1-1 with QPR could feature in this one, given the team dominated the match despite failing to secure all three points.
Stoke City possible starting lineup:
Johansson; Wilmot, Phillips, Gibson, Bocat; Seko, Sidibe; Manhoef, Bae, Koumas; Cannon
Preston North End possible starting lineup:
Woodman; Storey, Whatmough, Hughes; Potts, Holmes, Whiteman, Ledson, Kesler-Hayden; Greenwood, Jacobsen
We say: Stoke City 2-1 Preston North End
Stoke City may have struggled in this fixture in recent times, but the visitors have endured a difficult opening to the campaign, leading us to believe the hosts will win here.
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