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LAST TIME OUT

PRESTON NORTH END 0 MILLWALL 2



BIRMINGHAM CITY 2 HUDDERSFIELD TOWN 1



LAST MEETING

PRESTON NORTH END 2 BIRMINGHAM CITY 0

FORM GUIDE MAX 25

PNE 15 BIRMINGHAM CITY 7

BRUM NEWBIES

Karanka has spent close to a million on Leko every other signing was a free, Clayton, Friend, Toral, Sanchez, Prieto, San Jose (he'll be lost lateral thinking on that one, just for oldies)

HEAD TO HEAD

First meeting in 1894 when as Small Heath they won at Deepdale 1-0, City's last victory in 2001 they won 2-0, my first ever game 6/4/1968 0-0 for what it's worth that will be the score tomorrow

MACS VIEW

With the forecast for an utter deluge the chances of escaping watching this are reducing by the minute, apparently a few of them were ill before the game last Wednesday, Bauer apparently gave a technicolour yawn in the home dressing room at half time. 360 minutes without inding the net at Deepdale against a Birmingham side under Aitor who will play 10 at the back.
Hopefully the crab like football which has been witnessed in the last four home games will be replaced by a vibrant attacking display as if.
City fresh from a late winner against Huddersfield will look to build on that Lucas J is back more than a useful forward this promises to be a massively dull game.

Birmingham were utter garbage on Wednesday night, yet they still beat us 2-1. We had 77% possession. They just weren't interested in winning the ball back,just content to let us have the ball and wait for a mistake, which they managed to do to perfection. And they were at home!

Preston North End will look to pick up their first home points of the season when they face Birmingham City at Deepdale on Saturday afternoon.



Since the Lilywhites faced the Blues in the final home game of the extended 2019/20 season, this weekend’s visitors to Deepdale have had a change of manager, with Aitor Karanka taking up the hot seat at St Andrews.

The former Middlesbrough and Nottingham Forest boss came up against Alex Neil in the 2015 Championship Play-Off Final, so they will certainly know plenty about each other’s styles and it will make it an intriguing encounter.

iFollow PNE will have all the coverage of the game, with Ross Wallace, the former PNE winger – who famously scored a fantastic late winner against Birmingham City to help his side reach the 2008/09 Championship Play-Offs – joining Jonathan Breeze for full match commentary.


Team News
Both Ben Davies (ankle) and Ben Pearson (groin) are closer to a return to action, along with full back Darnell Fisher (hamstring), but Louis Moult continues his rehabilitation.

With a virus having hit the squad hard on Wednesday night, with Patrick Bauer withdrawn at half-time – on his birthday – due to the issues, the manager will have to make a late check on the health as well as fitness, before deciding on availability.

For the visitors, Aitor Karanka will have a headache in the middle of the pitch, after former Leeds and Middlesbrough midfielder Adam Clayton picked up an ankle injury in the late win over Huddersfield Town.

Match Officials
For the first time this season, north east official Tony Harrington will take charge of the Lilywhites for Saturday’s game.

He took charge of just one game last season, the home game with our last opponents Gary Rowett’s Millwall at Deepdale, but he has already refereed Birmingham City this season, their opening day win over Brentford at St Andrews.

In 2018/19 he took charge of three PNE games, the March trip to Reading, the 2-0 cup win at Leeds United back in August 2018 and the home game against West Bromwich Albion that autumn.

Tony has been a familiar face over recent seasons. In 2017/18 he visited Deepdale twice,
the Lilywhites’ opening day 1-0 victory over Sheffield Wednesday in Alex Neil’s first competitive game in charge of the club, and our Bank Holiday Monday clash with Derby County.

The previous season he also took charge of another two North End games, the 1-1 draw away at Nottingham Forest and the thrilling 4-2 win over Brentford at Deepdale.

The match official, who is now in his tenth year on the EFL list, has also been to PR1 on a number of previous occasions in the past, including the 2014/15 penalty win against Oldham Athletic in the JPT and the club’s last two home league games against Notts County, including a 2-0 win over the Magpies at Deepdale in February 2014.

This will be the Cleveland referee’s 7th game of the season and so far he had issued 19 cautions and no red cards.

He will be joined by assistants Nick Greenhalgh and Nik Barnard, whilst Shaun Hudson will be the fourth official.

1 all and apparently we have scored a worldie

Good news couln't be arsed watching

Preston set an unwanted club record of six straight home defeats as Gary Gardner's late header earned Birmingham the points at Deepdale.

Riley McGree lashed the visitors ahead on his first City start, latching on to a loose ball after Declan Rudd saved from Jonathan Leko and Lukas Jutkiewicz sent a misdirected shot into the Australian's path.

The Lilywhites had failed to score at Deepdale since 29 August, but were level when Jayden Stockley broke the duck in style, controlling a headed clearance and hitting a dipping half-volley into the top corner from 30 yards.

Jutkiewicz had a header disallowed for offside before Mikel San Jose picked out Gardner unmarked in the six-yard box to head the winner.

PNE line-up: Rudd, Fisher (Rafferty, 65), Hughes, Gallagher (Ledson, 62), Bauer, Storey, Barkhuizen, Johnson, Stockley (Riis, 76), Browne ©, Harrop. Subs not used: Ripley, Maguire, Sinclair, Potts.

Birmingham City line-up: Etheridge, Pedersen, Roberts, Jutkiewicz, Dean ©, Leko (Bela, 57), Sanchez, McGree (Gardner, 84), San Jose, Dacres-Cogley (Colin, 85), Sunjic. Subs not used: Prieto, Friend, Kieftenbeld, Hogan.

Referee: Mr T Harrington

Preston manager Alex Neil:

"Our away form is excellent, but our home form is certainly affecting me. I'd be surprised if it wasn't affecting the players.

"This was the first time I saw a lack of confidence at home. We're not stupid, we need to be better.

"Hard work and repetition is the only way of turning things around. We need to try and find the solutions and take the criticism on the chin."

Birmingham boss Aitor Karanka:

"We are feeling really good and improving. We've won two in a row, so hopefully we can build on this situation.

"The tactics are always important, but the attitude and spirit on the pitch is important. They showed that on the pitch, we need to keep going.

"I'm really excited for the team, but we are in October and I don't want to make the mistake of saying we'll be up the top. It's important to take it game by game and keep building."