Looking to bring an end to their worrying slide down the second-tier standings, Preston North End will travel to Carrow Road on Saturday afternoon to face a relatively in-form Norwich City side.
The Canaries have won three of their last four to quieten demands from sections of the fanbase for a change in management, while the Lilywhites are aiming to bounce back from a tepid performance against Queens Park Rangers.
Match preview
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After squandering a two-goal lead against Watford to return from Vicarage Road empty-handed on November 28, Norwich City were in desperate need of a positive response when they made the trek to Ashton Gate on Sunday afternoon, where Liam Manning's Bristol City awaited.
A limp first-half performance led to the Canaries going into the half-time break behind as Jason Knight scored for the Robins, but an own goal from George Tanner and a 95th-minute winner from Ireland international Adam Idah sealed the visitors' third win in four league matches, cuing wild celebrations which included a pile-up on under-pressure boss David Wagner.
The former Huddersfield Town man has failed to win over the majority of the Norwich faithful since taking the reins in East Anglia at the start of the calendar year, however a decent run of form since the middle of November means they have risen to 13th in the Championship table, just four points behind sixth-placed Hull City.
With the Canaries appointing a new sporting director in the form of Ben Knapper in recent weeks, Wagner's position at Carrow Road will be under intense scrutiny throughout the busy festive period, with the 2020-21 Championship winners hosting Preston and bottom side Sheffield Wednesday before facing Kieran McKenna's Ipswich Town in the Old Farm derby next weekend.
Despite his goal involvements drying up since the attacker netted in four-straight league matches at the start of the campaign, Jonathan Rowe is still a massive part of Norwich's potential playoff push under Wagner, with the 20-year-old scoring seven goals in 17 second-tier appearances so far.
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Since returning from November's international break, Preston North End have suffered three-straight defeats against Cardiff City, Michael Carrick's resurgent Middlesbrough and most recently a QPR side who are beginning to find their feet under the new stewardship of Spaniard Marti Cifuentes.
A 14,000-strong crowd at a bitterly-cold Deepdale witnessed the relegation-threatened R's come away with a 2-0 success over the Lilywhites last Friday night, with the half-time introduction of playmaker Ilias Chair making all the difference for the West Londoners, who found the net through Paul Smyth and Chris Willock.
After collecting a remarkable 20 points from their opening eight Championship matches, Ryan Lowe's men have won just two of their last 12 games - conceding 27 goals during that period - meaning Preston sit right at the bottom of most long-term form standings.
Conveying the competitiveness and tightness of the division in its middle section, the Lilywhites currently occupy eighth in the second-tier standings despite an abysmal run of results, with Liam Rosenior's Tigers just two points better off - a statistic which likely has those of a non-Preston persuasion questioning whether there is a genuine issue emerging in Lancashire.
By the time Lowe leads his team out onto the Carrow Road turf on Saturday afternoon, the Liverpudlian would have been in charge at the club for two years and two days, and although his early promises of attacking football have largely failed to be delivered, the 45-year-old still has plenty of credit in the bank with the Preston hierarchy.
Team News
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After limping off in the latter stages of the victory at Bristol City with a suspected ankle knock, there were concerns that Dimitrios Giannoulis would be unavailable this weekend, but Norwich boss Wagner has confirmed that the left-back is ready to feature.
Angus Gunn and leading marksman Rowe returned to action at Ashton Gate following their respective injuries, and both managed to navigate the fixture without any issues.
Grant Hanley has been missing in recent matches due to a hamstring injury but will resume first-team training next week, meaning Shane Duffy and Kenny McLean are set to be the centre-back pairing on Saturday.
Striker Ui-Jo Hwang has responded well to treatment for a hamstring strain suffered in the loss at Watford but is expected to be sidelined until the New Year, so veteran forward Ashley Barnes is set for a busy Christmas period in attack.
Preston dearly missed the physical presence of four-goal striker Milutin Osmajic during the QPR defeat, and the Montenegro international is unlikely to recover from a groin issue in time to feature in East Anglia.
Liverpool loanee Calvin Ramsay produced a steady performance on the right flank during his Lilywhites debut last Friday, but Lowe should reinstate Brad Potts into the XI after the wing-back served his one-game suspension against QPR.
Emil Riis Jakobsen is edging closer to competitive football after a serious cruciate ligament injury suffered at the start of 2023, with the 25-year-old targeting first-team minutes before Christmas.
Norwich City possible starting lineup:
Gunn; Stacey, Duffy, McClean, Giannoulis; Sara, Nunez, Hernandez, Rowe; Gibbs, Barnes
Preston North End possible starting lineup:
Woodman; Lindsay, Hughes, Storey; Potts, McCann, Browne, Millar, Holmes, Frokjaer-Jensen; Evans
We say: Norwich City 2-1 Preston North End
Norwich have picked up results in recent weeks without being too convincing performance-wise, and we feel that Saturday's clash with Preston could follow a similar script.
The Lilywhites are devoid of confidence following three-straight defeats, meaning we cannot imagine a positive result for the visitors at Carrow Road in this one.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Carter White
