English Other
2024-09-17 - Preston North End vs Fulham
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football: English League Cup Third Round
Tuesday 17th September 2024 - Kick Off 7:45pm
Preston North End
Ryan Lowe had been the Preston North End manager for some time, but an opening day loss saw him decide to mutually part from the club. It is Paul Heckingbottom who has been given the chance to reinvigorate Preston North End having had successes with Sheffield United, but it will take time for his methods to get across to the players.
The 1-1 draw with Middlesbrough leaves Preston North End just outside of the bottom three in the Championship. The hope is that the League Cup may give the squad a boost to take into the Championship and Preston North End have beaten Sunderland and Harrogate Town in this competition to take their place in the Third Round.
Preston North End have lost 1 of their 4 games played in all competitions under Paul Heckingbottom, although they have failed to win either of their last 2 since progressing at Harrogate Town in the League Cup. The side had lost 3 straight home games in all competitions, but Preston North End have now won 2 in a row at Deepdale.
Some changes may be made with an important local rivalry fixture coming up against Blackburn Rovers.
Fulham
Marco Silva will blame a lack of clinical finishing for the reason Fulham were not able to get the better of West Ham United this past Saturday. Even then, they looked to have done enough to earn a victory before conceding deep into injury time and that will be a frustration, despite extending Fulham's unbeaten run.
Under this current manager, Fulham have been solid enough when it comes to consolidating their place in the Premier League and that has allowed Marco Silva an opportunity to attack the Cup competitions. Marco Silva's Fulham team have had successes in both the League Cup and FA Cup over the last couple of years and they did reach the Semi Final in this competition last season.
Fulham are unbeaten in 4 games in all competitions since losing 1-0 at Manchester United on the opening weekend, although they have played out consecutive 1-1 draws. They did win 0-2 at Birmingham City in the League Cup Second Round and that means Fulham have won half of their last 6 games on their travels in all competitions.
A rotated first eleven won that match at St Andrew's in the last Round and Marco Silva may choose to freshen things up a little bit again. At the same time, this is a tougher away fixture for Fulham and so a few more key players may be called upon.
Head to Head
These clubs last met in the 2021/22 Championship season and it was Fulham who took four points from Preston North End in a campaign that concluded with promotion.
Fulham had won on 3 straight visits to Deepdale, but have since been beaten once and drawn once.
Prediction
The early Rounds of the League Cup can be a minefield to navigate, but Premier League Fulham are being managed by someone who has made it clear how much he does value Cup runs.
With the team expected to be more than good enough to avoid relegation, Marco Silva will be looking to guide Fulham to a Cup success.
Last season they were beaten in the League Cup Semi Final and Fulham will be keen to at least match that run. This is not an easy draw, but Fulham do have the squad depth to produce a victory at Deepdale.
Preston North End will have something to say about that with Paul Heckingbottom's early results being decent enough. However, his methods will take some time to really be accepted by the players and Preston North End may come up a little short with a small interest on the Premier League club progressing looking worthy of being backed.
The Pick :
Preston North End 0-2 Fulham
