Preston North End vs Brentford prediction, preview, team news and more | EFL Championship 2020-21
Brentford travel to Deepdale Stadium on Saturday hoping to arrest their slump when they face lowly Preston North End in the EFL Championship.
The Bees have dropped out of the league's top two following a run of four consecutive stalemates. They currently sit in third place.
They've won only three times in the last 11 matches after going the previous 22 games unbeaten, signaling a drop in form.
They have also landed their hopes of direct promotion in hot water as the London outfit trail city rivals Watford by nine points, albeit with a game in hand.
All four of their draws lately have come against sides residing in 15th position or lower, so that will give Preston some confidence.
Meanwhile, Preston are languishing in 16th position at the moment. The Lilywhites found some respite after beating Swansea City in their last game, their first victory in seven games.
Preston North End vs Brentford Head-To-Head
There have been 59 previous meetings between the sides and the spoils are closely shared. Preston have won on 22 occasions and lost to Brentford on another 24.
In their first clash this season in October, the Lilywhites secured a 4-2 victory at Brentford.
Preston North End Form Guide (all competitions): L-L-L-D-W
Brentford Form Guide (all competitions): W-D-D-D-D
Preston North End vs Brentford Team News
Preston North End
Declan Rudd and Patrick Bauer are both long-term injuries but head coach Frankie McAvoy will have captain Alan Browne back from his three-game ban.
Injured: Declan Rudd and Patrick Bauer
Suspended: None
Unavailable: None
Brentford
Full-back Henrik Dalsgaard might return from injury in time for this weekend's game. However, Shandon Baptiste, Josh Dasilva and Rico Henry all remain sidelined.
Injured: Shandon Baptiste, Josh Dasilva, and Rico Henry
Suspended: None
Unavailable: None
Preston North End vs Brentford Predicted XI
Preston North End (4-3-1-2): Daniel Iversen; Sepp van den Berg, Jordan Storey, Liam Lindsay, Andrew Hughes; Ben Whiteman, Ryan Ledson, Alan Browne; Brad Potts; Emil Riis, Ched Evans.
Brentford (4-3-3): David Raya; Fin Stevens, Pontus Jansson, Ethan Pinnock, Mads Bech Sorensen; Christian Norsgaard, Vitaly Janelt, Mathias Jensen; Sergi Canos, Ivan Toney, Bryan Mbuemo.
Preston North End vs Brentford Prediction
Brentford's automatic promotion hopes are fast fading and they must find their winning form again before it's too late.
Preston have shown positive signs under McAvoy and will be confident of taking points off Brentford.
We expect this match to produce a high-scoring stalemate.
Prediction: Preston North End 2-2 Brentford