Preston North End vs Rotherham United: Betting Odds & Prediction

Play-off hopefuls Preston North End host relegation-bound Rotherham United on Friday afternoon as the allure of Premier League football heats up the race for promotion. 

Kick-off is set for 3pm UK time at Deepdale. 

Recent Form 

Preston North End

The home side come into the match five points off the play-off places in ninth. Their form looked to be stuttering after they dropped points in consecutive home matches; a 0-0 draw with fellow play-off rivals Hull City was followed by a disappointing 2-1 defeat against Stoke City. Ryan Lowe's side returned to winning ways last time out though as they secured a 1-0 victory at Plymouth Argyle. 

Despite recent results, Preston's form at home has been solid so far this term. With an average of 1.63 points per game (W9, D4, L6), the hosts have the ninth best home form in the division. 

Their defensive record is a slight concern, though; 31 goals conceded in front of their home fans leaves them with an average of 1.63 per match, which is even worse than their projected expected goals against (xGA) tally of 1.48. They've also conceded in 89% of home games, 47% of which has seen them concede two or more. 

Going forward, Preston have been dependable. 28 goals scored in 19 has seen an average of 1.47 so far, which falls in line with their expected goal (xG) projection of 1.48. They've also found the net in 79% of matches on home turf, scoring two or more in 57%. 

Rotherham United

The season has been one to forget for Rotherham fans whose side are almost certain to be playing League One football next year. With just 20 points to their name, they sit rock bottom in the Championship and are already a whopping 19 points adrift of safety. 

Rotherham haven't recorded a single victory in 15 matches in all competitions, and a 0-0 draw at home to Huddersfield last time out is somewhat marred given the away side played the final half an hour with ten men. Prior to that, they suffered consecutive 5-0 defeats to Norwich and Coventry away from home.

Their record on the road is woeful. They are yet to record an away victory this season and have averaged just 0.21 points per game so far (W0, D4, L15). 

53 goals conceded leaves them with an average of 2.79 per match, far higher than their projected xGA of 1.84. They've conceded in 95% of away games, 84% of which have seen them concede at least two. Even more worryingly, they've shipped three or more in 53% of their matches on the road so far. 

Rotherham have been equally as disappointing going forward. Their 13 goals scored equates to an average 0.68 per game, which slightly falls below of their projected 0.71 xG. They've failed to find the net in 53% of away matches, and have only scored twice in 16%. 

Prediction

To the surprise of no one, Preston enter as heavy favourites against a Rotherham side already pleading for the season to end. There's no value in backing the home side on the moneyline, but their healthy goalscoring figures combined with Rotherham's abysmal defensive record means plenty of goals can be expected at Deepdale. 

OddsNow's Pick: Over 2.5+ goals scored (Evens @ bet365); Over 3+ goals scored (17/10 @ vbet)