Preston North End hope to make it three wins in a row as they host Middlesbrough at Deepdale in the EFL Championship.
The Lilywhites backed up their 3-2 win against Ipswich Town with a 2-0 victory against Cardiff City in South Wales last Saturday. Emil Riis was on target and then Ben Whiteman netted in a commanding victory for PNE. Preston moved up to 10th with the win and at the time of writing are just two points off of the play-offs.
There's a renewed optimism in Lancashire based on recent results, and if a result can be secured against Boro then that would go a long way towards making for a good February. It's a possibility that if results go in their favour they could end up overtaking Coventry City who currently occupy the fourth and final play-off spot.
The games are coming thick and fast as we move into nearly three quarters of the campaign being completed. Some clubs have re-arranged fixtures to play this month but this round of fixtures has all 24 teams playing.
Earlier on in the season, Boro won 4-0 at the Riverside with Michael Carrick's side racing in to a three-goal lead inside 37 minutes. Isaih Jones scored a brace and Rav van den Berg got in on the action and then in stoppage time Alex Bangura increased the margin of victory. Preston have lost their last two games to Boro 4-0 and their last home win against them came in October 2022.
Preston's win against Cardiff was almost the perfect day but there were two slight injury concerns to worry about. Alan Browne and Brad Potts were both forced off and their status for Wednesday has been brought in to question. Here's the latest injury and team news ahead of Preston North End and Middlesbrough.
1. Ched Evans - out
His hamstring needs strengthening up and so PNE are 'taking time' with it, adopting a cautious approach.
2. Josh Coburn - doubt
Suffered an injury setback which forced him out of the match-day squad at the weekend. He is dealing with a longstanding groin issue. Photo: Getty Images
3. Josh Coburn - doubt (continued)
Michael Carrick said on February 10: "“It’s a little bit step by step with Josh at the moment, with the issue he’s got in and around his groin, and his pelvis. “We had to pull him out for a couple of days, so we’ll see if he improves going into next week.”
