Will Preston overtake the Seasiders in the catch-up match?

Even at the beginning of April, the English Championship table still has to be viewed with a little caution. Between 37 and 40 games have been played so far by the 24 teams in England’s second highest league. Accordingly, there are still many games to be played and every available match date must be used. On Tuesday evening, Preston and Blackpool will meet in a duel.

A clash of two teams who are neighbours in no man’s land in the table. The play-off places are no longer realistic even with a winning streak to end the season, and the relegation battle has never been an issue. For Blackpool in particular, however, this is a great compliment as a promoted team. Blackpool, however, owes its relegation status in particular to its performances in its own stadium.

Away from home, there is a clear performance gap and accordingly, the best bookmakers are only offering odds of just over 2.00 for a home win in the catch-up match between Preston and Blackpool.

“The Lilyhwites”, as the team from Preston is also called, can definitely be described as strong at home. They have only lost three games at home in Deepdale Stadium and nine away from home. The match between the 15th and 14th placed teams will kick off on Tuesday evening at 20:45.

Preston – Statistics & current form

Probably only true football experts know that Preston North End play a significant role in the history books of English football. In 1888/89, the team crowned itself the first English champions and also became the first double winners. The title win was unique until 2003/04, as it was achieved without a single defeat. In 2003/04, Arsenal repeated the feat under Arsene Wenger.

At home in midfield

The Lilywhites are now a long way from such success. Since the introduction of the English Premier League, the club has never been in the top flight, twice failing to reach the promotion play-offs. In the meantime, the club was only at home in the third-tier League One (2011 to 2015), before at least returning to the Championship. In the meantime, the team has managed to establish itself in the midfield of the league. There were never any relegation worries, but the dream of a first-time Premier League promotion was only halfway realistic in 2017/18. In seventh place, they missed the play-offs by a whisker.

With seven games to go and eleven points off sixth place, it doesn’t take a prophet to suggest that the team will be in the Championship again next season. Any chances have been squandered in recent weeks, with head coach Ryan Lowe’s side (he took over in mid-December) winning just one of their last seven league games.

Few hits on PNE

The English Championship has a reputation as the “toughest second division in the world” not only because of the fact that there are 46 regular match days, but also because of the way it is played. Fight and passion are far more important than technical finesse. Accordingly, the proportion of games with few goals is also relatively high because of passionate defending.

With an average of only 2.18 goals per game, the games of the Lilywhites are not recommended for lovers of attacking football. Only 17 times in 39 games have they scored over 2.5. Accordingly, betting on the under 2.5 for Preston against Blackpool is a good idea. It should also be noted that Lowe’s side have failed to score in their last three league games. The role of the favourites is, however, quite justifiable in view of a reasonable 6-9-3 home record and the 4-7-6 away record of the visitors.

Predicted Preston line-up:
Iversen – Bauer, van den Berg, Hughes – Johnson, Whiteman, Browne, Rafferty – Riis, Evans, Archer

Last matches played by Preston:

Championship
04/02 2022 – Derby 1 – 0 Preston

03/16 2022 – Luton 4 – 0 Preston

03/12 2022 – Cardiff 0 – 0 Preston

03/05 2022 – Preston 2 – 1 Bournemouth

02/26 2022 – Coventry 1 – 1 Preston

Blackpool – Statistics & current form

The Seasiders from Blackpool are currently promoted this season, but have already gained experience in the Premier League. In 2010/11, however, the adventure was quickly over after 38 match days and a meagre 19 points. After missing out on direct promotion, Blackpool entered the darkest period in the club’s recent history. They were relegated to the fourth-tier League Two (2016/17). At that time, they were immediately promoted again, and the return to the Championship was achieved the previous year thanks to the play-offs.

Season with many ups and downs

The sovereign class preservation and place in the midfield can definitely be considered a great success. What is striking when looking at the results this season is the fact that head coach Neil Cratchley’s team lacks consistency. Longer series without a win alternated with longer series without a defeat. In view of this, more would have been possible for the promoted team.

Blackpool were in fine form before the recent international break, picking up ten points out of a possible twelve from four games. Goalkeeper Daniel Grimshaw kept three clean sheets in a row.

However, not only was the goal barrage brought to an abrupt halt last weekend, but for the first time in four games the Seasiders conceded a defeat. A 1:4 defeat at home against Nottingham Forest was also extremely clear.

Away clearly weaker

The visitors from Nottingham are absolutely “on fire”, but the amount of the defeat was still surprising. Basically, Blackpool is a lot stronger at home than away from home this season. Of their 14 wins so far this season, Blackpool have celebrated ten at home. Away from home, on the other hand, Blackpool have only been able to celebrate four times. The 1-0 win at Stoke City (5 March) was the first away win since 30 October.

Predicted line-up of Blackpool:
Grimshaw – Husband, Thorinley, Ekpiteta, Sterling – Bowler, Stewart, Dougall, Hamilton – Madine, Yates

Last matches played by Blackpool:

Championship
04/02 2022 – Blackpool 1 – 4 Nottingham Forest

03/16 2022 – Blackpool 0 – 0 Sheffield United

03/12 2022 – Blackpool 1 – 0 Swansea

03/05 2022 – Stoke 0 – 1 Blackpool

02/26 2022 – Blackpool 4 – 1 Reading

Preston – Blackpool Direct Comparison / H2H Balance

Total of 81 duels can be found in the database between these two teams. However, only the first leg of the current season is really relevant for Tuesday night’s match. The rest of the games all took place quite a while ago. The last time they met in the league before this season was in the 2009/10 season.

The first encounter of the 2021/22 season took place on 23 October, with the promoted side winning 2-0 at home. It was Blackpool’s 26th win against Preston North End. “PNE” have won 40 of their 81 games so far.

Preston – Blackpool Tip

This catch-up game no longer has much sporting relevance for either team, as the no-man’s land of the table is home to both teams. From a purely sporting point of view, the home side, also thanks to the home advantage, are certainly to be rated stronger, and rightly so. In terms of quality, too, slight advantages can be found on the side of the first English champions. The role of favourite, which arises with Preston against Blackpool on the basis of the odds, is quite justified.

Especially as the Seasiders from Blackpool often fall short of expectations, especially in foreign games. Preston North End, on the other hand, present themselves at home as a team that is difficult to defeat. Accordingly, the recommendation for the post-match match between Preston and Blackpool is also a tip on the home win, which is played with six units. In general, a game with few opportunities is to be expected, so an Under 2.5 or a “Both teams score? No” are a good option.