Sunderland travel to Preston North End for their regular season finale as they seek three points to give them a chance for a promotion playoff finish.
Preston North End do not have much on the line heading into the final fixture of the season. Sitting 11th on the table, their motivation heading into Monday’s clash is to end the season on a high in front of their fans.
The Invincibles have found things difficult in recent weeks and are winless in their last four Championship matches. They head into Monday’s clash with a 4-1 defeat at Sheffield United in a fixture that highlights a leaky defence without a clean alert in the last five matches.
The good news for Preston North End is that they have been on the road a lot lately and return to Deepdale which has been a fortress in recent weeks. Ryan Lowe’s men are unbeaten in their last seven home matches, claiming four wins in that run.
Sunderland are still in the mix for the playoffs, although they need help from elsewhere. Sitting just outside the top six, they need all three points on Monday while also hoping for a slip-up from either Millwall or Coventry City.
The Black Cats have done their part in recent weeks and travel to Deepdale unbeaten in their last eight matches. However, there have been four draws in that run, including a 2-2 scoreline with Watford in their previous Championship fixture.
The good news for Sunderland is that they have done some of their best work away from home in recent weeks. Tony Mowbray’s men have claimed three wins and a draw in their last four Championship matches on the road.
How the bookies view it
Sunderland have been installed as overwhelming favourites among the bookies and are priced at 19/20 by Coral to claim the win. A victory for Preston North End is valued at 3/1 by bet365 while Unibet is offering odds of 29/10 for a draw.
Head to head
Preston North End have a 25-23 advantage with 22 draws from 70 previous matches against Sunderland. Preston have won five of the last seven meetings while the reverse fixture ended in a 0-0 draw.
Players to watch
Thomas Cannon has been in good form for Preston North End in recent weeks with seven goals in his last 10 Championship matches. The forward could be worth keeping an eye on to score anytime at 29/10 with William Hill.
As always Sunderland will look to Amad Diallo to provide the spark in attack as he looks to add to his 12 Championship goals. Bet365 is offering odds of 11/5 on the forward to score anytime on Monday.
Anything else catch the eye?
Preston North End and Sunderland each say over 3.5 goals in their previous Championship fixtures and a similar outcome is priced at 9/4 with BetVictor. Over 2.5 goals could also be considered at 10/3 with Unibet.
There were some late showings in their respective previous matches which means there are likely to be more goals after the break at evens with bet365. Both teams can also be backed to score in the second half at 9/4 with William Hill.
This England Championship match between Preston North End and Sunderland will be played on May 8, 2023 and kick off at 15:00. Check below for our tipsters best Preston North End vs Sunderland prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
