Match Preview: Stoke City (H)

28 September 2021

It’s a night under the lights at Deepdale on Tuesday evening as Preston North End host Stoke City in the Championship.

Match Information
Venue: Deepdale
Date: Tuesday 28th September, 7.45pm kick-off
Competition: EFL Sky Bet Championship (Matchday 10/46)
Kit: Home kit – available to order here!

Supporter Information

Tickets for this game will remain on sale from all the usual places – online at mypne.com, over the phone on 0344 856 1966 and from the Deepdale ticket office – right up until kick-off.

Our fan zone will be open once again, with live music, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages and family activities available to home supporters. The fan zone opens at 5.30pm and last orders before the game will be 7.30pm, while it will reopen after the game at around 9.45pm until last orders at 10.30pm.

If you can’t join us at Deepdale, the game will be available to watch live on iFollow PNE from around the world. Buy your £10 match pass here.

PNE Team News

Tom Barkhuizen, who has been out of action since the opening day of the season due to Covid, is set to be back in contention to feature on Tuesday evening.

So too will club captain Alan Browne, who missed the weekend’s draw against Birmingham through a knock, and Liam Lindsay, who was injured in the Cheltenham Town game last Tuesday.

This match will come too soon, however, for the likes of Ched Evans and Matthew Olosunde, who Frankie McAvoy hopes to have available after the international break.

The Opposition

After finishing 16th, 15th and 14th in the last three seasons respectively, Stoke will be looking to propel themselves into the top half at least, if not into a Play-Off position.

That’s where they sit at the moment, occupying fifth spot, and they’ve tasted victory in their last two matches, firstly over Watford in the Carabao Cup before returning to league action on Saturday with a win over Hull City.

Former Northern Ireland boss Michael O’Neill is the man in charge of the Potters, as he has been since November 2019, and he’ll likely go for his favoured 3-5-2 formation again at Deepdale.

Key Stats

Stoke’s main source of goals is former Wigan Athletic man Nick Powell, who scored 12 in the Championship last term, while he’s already found the net three times this season, including a stunning free-kick in his last game.

Despite being beaten by the Potters in 2020, PNE tend to do pretty well at home to Stoke, having lost just twice in the last ten times they’ve welcomed their opponents to Deepdale.

Only former Watford defender Ben Wilmot has featured in every single minute – 810 in total – of Championship action so far for Stoke this season.

Our Last Meeting

It was a goalless draw the last time these two sides met, in a game where PNE were probably unfortunate to not take all three points.

Daniel Iversen made a few crucial saves in the first half, before Andrew Hughes struck the post from a free-kick, and North End could have won the game in the final stages as Alan Browne broke into the area, only to be brought down by Harry Souttar who saw red as a result.

Man In The Middle

John Brooks will be the referee on Tuesday evening and he’s no stranger to this fixture, having taken charge of both Championship meetings between the two in the 2019/20 season, which both ended in victories for PNE.

So far this term, Brooks has been the main official for three games, refereeing in three different competitions: League Two, the Championship and the Carabao Cup.

He’s a very experienced official and this summer was promoted to Select Group 1, the panel of the country’s top referees.

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Match Reports

Match Report: PNE 1 Stoke City 1

28 September 2021

Ben Whiteman’s stunning free-kick earned Preston North End a draw at home to Stoke City.

The Lilywhites had fallen behind within seven minutes as Nick Powell headed past Daniel Iversen, but Whiteman had his team level before half-time as he beat Adam Davies from a 20-yard dead ball.

Daniel Iversen then had to come up with a few big stops to make sure that his side could extend their unbeaten run to nine in all competitons.

Frankie McAvoy was forced into making a change after going the last five Championship games with the same starting XI, as Andrew Hughes missed out through a knock and Greg Cunningham slotted in at left centre half.

The visitors opened the scoring in the early stages, as Powell headed home on the end of Josh Tymon’s cross from the left, and the Potters nearly doubled their lead three minutes later when Iversen had to pull off a strong save to keep out Tommy Smith’s shot.

North End’s first chance of the game came around a quarter of an hour in, when Whiteman slotted the ball through for Emil Riis in the right of the area, but he could only send his low effort across goal and wide.

Stoke came very close to their second 28 minutes in when Bauer lost his balance and the ball fell kindly to Powell as a result in the area, he had just Iversen to beat but the Dane produced a fantastic stop with his left hand to deny him.

That save proved vital as North End drew level ten minutes later from a free-kick won just over 20 yards out by Josh Earl. Daniel Johnson and Whiteman stood over it, the latter took on the effort and expertly got it over the wall and into the back of the net.

PNE then had their tails up and Ryan Ledson tried his luck a couple of times before half-time to no avail, before again having a go 56 minutes in when Johnson pulled the ball back to him just outside the 18-yard box, and he curled his effort over the crossbar into the Town End.

Just moments later, the home side nearly put themselves in front in sensational fashion, with Cunningham taking aim from all of 35 yards, powering a left-footed effort just wide of the top right-hand corner.

On 67 minutes it was Stoke’s turn to go close and they would have had the lead were it not for another brilliant piece of goalkeeping by Iversen, who showed a strong left-hand to keep out Tymon from point blank range.

Sam Clucas, who came on in the 71st minute, was involved straight away and he was next to be thwarted by the Dane, this save a little more straight forward as his header went straight in his direction.

Both sides made attacking changes, with the likes of Josh Murphy coming on for PNE and Sam Surridge on for the visitors.

But neither the Lilywhites nor the Potters could find a winner late on, with North End forced to settle for a point and their fifth draw in succession in Championship action.

PNE starting line-up: Iversen; Storey, Bauer, Cunningham; van den Berg, Johnson, Whiteman (McCann, 69), Ledson (Murphy, 77), Earl; Maguire (Browne, 63), Riis. Subs: Rudd, Lindsay, Sinclair, Potts.

Subs not used: Rudd, Lindsay, Sinclair, Potts.

Stoke starting line-up: Davies; Ostigard, Souttar, Wilmot; Smith, Sawyers, Vrancic (Clucas, 71), Thompson; Powell, Brown (Surridge, 77). Subs: Bursik, Batth, Doughty, Duhaney, Ince.

Subs not used: Bursik, Batth, Doughty, Duhaney, Ince.

Attendance: 10,930

Referee: Mr J Brooks

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