Both of these sides head into this encounter needing points for different reasons, with Cardiff battling to hold on to their automatic position while Preston are a long way adrift at the bottom. Having lost their last two games it would be fair to say that the Bluebirds are not in the best of form, although their opponents are on an even worse run with just one win from their last ten.
It was only a few weeks ago that Cardiff were sat at the top of the table and while their lead was slim, it still looked as though the Bluebirds would be up in the automatic spots for a long, long time. However, a few bad results later and Dave Jones must be sweating and with bitter rivals Swansea just three points away, the Bluebirds could even be knocked out of their 2nd placing this weekend. The drop has come following a month of bad results and with the Cardiff City stadium outfit winning just one of their last five, their supporters must be beginning to panic a little. Of course, all sides go on a bad run through a season but with all his experience, Dave Jones will know that these results cannot carry on for much longer.
If Cardiff’s fans are worried, Preston’s faithful must be absolutely petrified. What’s more, manager Darren Ferguson must be quite concerned as well and the pressure is certainly mounting on the former Peterborough boss. The Lilywhites have had a dreadful campaign and with a return of just fifteen points from their opening nineteen games, they are rock bottom and already five points adrift from safety. Their last win game way back in October and unfortunately for Ferguson, he appears to have lost the faith of his supporters a long time ago. Of course the season is still young and nothing is confirmed yet, but their current points tally suggests that radical changes are required if the Deepdale outfit are to stay in this division.
As for team news, Cardiff have a few problems heading into this one and it starts between the sticks with David Marshall set to start due to Tom Heaton’s injury. Elsewhere, Dave Jones also has problems in defence with Chris Riggott and Paul Quinn both unavailable. It’s looking better for the visitors who could welcome back Callum Davidson following a groin problem. Paul Coutts may also return following injury, while Sean St Ledger is likely to be named on the bench.
In terms of a prediction, we can only go for a home win here. Cardiff may be on a poor run of form, but Preston are in a dire situation at the moment and they don’t look like coming out of this mess any time soon. With that, we’ll go with a 2-0 victory for the Bluebirds.
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