Sky Sports; Preview: Norwich City vs. Preston North End – prediction, team news, lineups.
Norwich City will face Preston North End at Carrow Road in the Championship on Tuesday night, hoping to build on their recent success.
The Canaries are now eighth in the Championship table, two points behind sixth-placed Blackburn Rovers, while Preston are 15th, eight points away from the playoff berths in the second tier of English football.
Norwich has 11 victories, 10 draws, and 10 loses from 31 Championship matches this season, for a total of 43 points, putting them in eighth position in the standings, just two points behind sixth-placed Blackburn.
The Canaries have seven points from their past three matches, defeating Swansea City and Watford before drawing 1-1 with Derby County on Saturday afternoon, and they will want to win their 12th league game of the season on Tuesday.
This season, Johannes Thorup’s team has the second-highest goalscoring record in the Championship, with 50 goals. They also boast the division’s leading scorer, Borja Sainz, who has 15 goals.
Norwich finished sixth in the Championship last season, losing to Leeds United in the playoff semi-finals, and they hope to return to the top six, but it will be a difficult task given the quality of the clubs above them.
The Canaries have 27 points from 15 home league games this season, and they will face Preston, who have only 12 points from 15 Championship games away.
Preston, meanwhile, will be coming off a penalty-shootout win against Wycombe Wanderers in the FA Cup, which advanced the side to the fifth round of the competition.
Paul Heckingbottom’s team has won two of their previous three Championship games, beating Watford and Middlesbrough in a row before losing 2-1 to Blackburn at the end of January.
The Lilywhites have eight wins, 13 draws, and nine loses in 30 league matches this season, for a total of 37 points, putting them in 15th place in the standings, eight points below the playoff berths.
Preston are nine points clear of the relegation zone, so they should be looking up the division rather than down, and a push for the playoffs is feasible if the squad can put together a good run.
The Lilywhites have not beaten Norwich since October 2022, however the two teams drew 2-2 in the first half of the 2024-25 season.
Team News
Norwich will be missing Liam Gibbs, Gabriel Forsyth, Forson Amankwah, Onel Hernandez, and Anthony Springett for their league game against Preston on Tuesday night.
Sainz has been in terrific form for the Canaries this season, scoring 16 goals, and will be available for this encounter after serving a six-game suspension for spitting against Sunderland in December.
Ante Crnac, a 21-year-old, has five goals in all competitions this season and will continue to play in the starting lineup.
Preston’s Robbie Brady and Ben Whiteman are out, while Jordan Storey is set to miss the game due to an injury sustained against Blackburn.
If Storey is ruled out, Jack Whatmough, who came on as a substitute in the 30th minute against Rovers, is anticipated to benefit.
Emil Riis, who has eight goals in 33 appearances this season, will likely play in the last third of the field. Sam Greenwood and Mads Frokjaer-Jensen are also expected to start.
Norwich City’s likely starting lineup: Gunn; Fisher, Duffy, Doyle, Mahovo; Nunez, McLean, Marcondes; Crnac, Sainz, Sargent.
Preston North End’s likely starting lineup: Woodman; Whatmough, Gibson, Hughes; Kesler-Hayden, McCann, Ledson, Meghoma; Greenwood; Frokjaer-Jensen, Riis.
We predict: Norwich City 2-1 Preston North End.
Norwich have only lost twice at home in the Championship this season, and they will face a Preston side with only two away victories – it will be extremely tough to back an away victory here, and we anticipate Norwich to win on Tuesday night.
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