It is a Lancashire battle this weekend between two sides who are aiming for different things at this early stage of the season.
Preston North End
A torrid start to the season had Preston languishing in the league but they are in fact unbeaten since the start of October. With four draws and three wins, they are a side who are really tough to beat. Especially at home as they have picked up two of the three wins at home.
Alex Neil has really turned things around after the poor start and will be wanting three more vital points on Saturday as they try to move away from the dreaded relegation zone.
It has been a tough start without top scorer from last season Sean Maguire but with Callum Robinson, they have found a more than capable replacement. The left winger has found the net eight times this season and is instrumental in finding the killer pass to unlock the defence. Blackburn will have to keep tabs on the Republic of Ireland international if they want to keep a clean sheet.
Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn is back in the Championship after finishing 2nd in League One last year. The remit at the start of the year for Tony Mowbray would have been to avoid relegation but if they carry on like they are now then they could grab a playoff spot with a chance of finally returning to the Premier League for the first time since 2012.
The stand out man for Blackburn has to be their defender Derrick Williams. The Irish man can play either left back or centre back and he has done a superb job in either position. The Lancashire side has kept three clean sheets in their past six games with Williams in defence. He was the man of the match in the 1-0 win over Queens Park Rangers.
Head to head
Two historical clubs with a lot of history behind them and this fixture date back to 1888 when the two sides met in the top division. However, they now face each other in the second tier and have not met since the 2016/17 season where they drew and Preston picked up a 3-2 win at Deepdale.
Outcome
Although Preston is picking up vital points they may find themselves come unstuck against an impressive Blackburn side who are fighting to break into the play-off places. It will be close with the home advantage but Blackburn might just nick this 2-1.
