[themaclad]

West Bromwich Albion

Deepdale

30 November 2024 15.00hrs

Play them again in a month, tthe utter joy of that

MANAGER



HOW THEY DOING?





FORM GUIDE

PNE 4 WBA 11

HOT SHOTS



NEWISH



CHAMPO STUFF



THEY'VE BEATEN US BEFORE BIT



MANAGER STUFF

Paul Heckingbottom praised the attitude of Dai Cornell and challenged the goalkeeper to go and fight for his spot, as he looks set to deputise for the suspended Freddie Woodman.

North End’s No.1 was shown a late red card in the midweek draw against Stoke City, leaving an empty spot between the sticks for the Welsh shot-stopper to fill.

His cameo appearance from the bench on Tuesday night was his first of the season, but the manager said his attitude – whether he’s playing or not – can never be questioned.



Hecky said: “In my time here, the way he's approached every day has been exactly the same. He’s known his role and with that comes that understanding that you have to train hard and be ready every day because you've got to keep yourself sharp when you've not got the games to do that for you. Dai does that. He trains really well every day.

“It's the same as every other place on the pitch. I know Freddie's had the shirt for a long, long time, and then we've stayed with him and he's had the shirt for us, so nothing's really changed for Dai.

“The good thing from my point of view is he’s been used to that. He’s used to being ready. What we want is him going out there performing, like he wants to stay in the shirt. That's it. That’s the competition you want in every position.”

Competition at times this season has not been as strong as it could have been, due to injuries and suspensions.

PNE will, though, welcome back Ali McCann after he served a one-match ban, while Liam Lindsay and Mads Frøkjær both have a chance of returning from injury at Deepdale.


Up top, there have been welcome returns for Milutin Osmajić and Will Keane, who had been missing through suspension and injury respectively.

Hecky said: “There’s no risk with Milly because Milly was training a lot. He just missed a lot of games because he didn't go away with the national team either.

“It’s game time for Milly that he needs. Keano’s obviously a little bit different because he had an injury, so we're bringing him back.

“He looks fitter every day. He's looked better in training. He got a few minutes Saturday and a few more midweek. He’s in a position in my mind now where he can start.”

West Brom come to Lancashire sat just outside of the Play-Off spots and on the back of a rather unusual run of results, having drawn eight of their previous nine matches.

“We know it's going to be tough,” added Hecky. “Carlos (Corberán) has done it at Huddersfield and West Brom, where he’s set up in a similar way.

“They can be good in possession or they can be really strong without the ball and good on the counter, so we know it's going to be tough. We know it's going to be a tight game.

“We have to approach it the way we approach all games and set out to try and win it and try and cause them as many problems as we can to get three points.”

https://www.wba.co.uk/

The Fitness Test

Liam Lindsay and Mads Frøkjær both have a chance of being available for Saturday, with their fitness set to be assessed ahead of the weekend.

Robbie Brady is due to return to training next week, therefore will miss the weekend, while Paul Heckingbottom confirmed he feels Will Keane is now fit enough to be in a position to start.

Ched Evans and Patrick Bauer are the only other players expected to miss out.

The Baggies



West Brom head into the weekend’s round of fixtures sat seventh in the table and in the middle of a nine-match unbeaten run.

It’s been a pretty unique sequence of results for the Baggies in recent weeks, having drawn eight of those nine games, with five of those being goalless affairs.

Having conceded just 11 goals, they’re the division’s third-tightest defence, and that could prove important as they look to reach the Play-Offs for a second consecutive season.

The Officials

Referee: Thomas Bramall
Assistant Referees: Richard West and Natalie Aspinall
Fourth Officials: Matthew Corlett

Thomas Bramall, who last refereed PNE in March 2024 in a goalless draw at home to Hull City, will take charge of Saturday’s fixture.

Bramall has officiated three North End wins in the past, including the 2-1 victory over Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park when Liam Lindsay scored a last-minute winner.

MACS MUSINGS

A team we don't have a recent good record against having been battered twice last season, we are the draw kings of the division apparently we have hit 400 hundred stalemates of 0-0 most of them this season
Take a point at least we possibly have a keeper who has a bit off confidence playing, he may be busy