Preston North End vs Cambridge United - prediction, team news, lineups

Preston North End and Cambridge United volition proceed their preparations for the 2026-27 play connected Friday, erstwhile they conscionable for a affable successful Spain.

The 2 sides some headed retired for pre-season camps up of their upcoming presumption successful the Championship and League One respectively and volition play their 3rd friendlies.

Match preview

Preston North End volition instrumentality to enactment successful a affable connected Friday arsenic portion of their pre-season travel to Spain arsenic they cogwheel up for a 12th consecutive play successful the Championship.

Their latest word ended successful a 14th-placed decorativeness nether Paul Heckingbottom, dropping into the bottommost fractional arsenic they mislaid 3 of their past 4 games to extremity connected 60 points from 46 matches.

In those games, the Lilywhites managed 15 wins alongside 16 defeats, having recovered themselves amazingly warring astir the playoff spots until February.

They past turned their absorption to the upcoming word with the hopes of a much sustained combat astatine the apical extremity of the part and began with a 4-1 triumph implicit section non-league broadside Bamber Bridge, earlier taking connected third-tier Sheffield Wednesday past week and losing 3-2, having fallen 2 goals down and drawn level done Alfie Devine and Callum Lang.

With 4 friendlies near to play earlier starting their EFL Cup and Championship campaigns successful August, Preston North End volition anticipation to people their Spain travel with a triumph connected Friday arsenic they ramp up their preparations.

Their opponents, meanwhile, caput into the contention aiming to marque a connection against second-tier absorption and marque it 3 wins from 3 friendlies.

Cambridge United came into pre-season connected the backmost of a memorable 2025-26 term, having earned automatic promotion backmost to League One successful 3rd place, finishing connected 82 points from their 46 outings.

In that time, Neil Harris's broadside suffered conscionable 8 defeats, portion lone conceding 33 goals, 11 less than immoderate different squad successful the part to seal their instrumentality to the 3rd tier astatine the archetypal clip of asking.

Gearing up for beingness backmost successful League One, the U's began pre-season against Cambridge City and picked up a 3-1 victory, with Louis Appere, trialist Tommy McDermott and Ben Knight connected the scoresheet earlier gathering fifth-tier Southend United and winning 2-1.

Having present headed to Spain arsenic they summation their preparations with 3 games near to play, Cambridge United volition anticipation to support gathering momentum successful Friday's pugnacious test.

Preston North End Club affable form:

W L

Cambridge United Club affable form:

W W

Team News

Paul Heckingbottom fielded wholly antithetic Preston XIs for their 2 halves against Sheffield Wednesday past clip retired and should proceed to rotate, though helium whitethorn displacement person to a full-strength squad to footwear off.

Attacker Jusef Erabi made his archetypal quality successful that friendly, pursuing a indebtedness determination from Genk, and helium whitethorn again play up beforehand alongside Milutin Osmajic.

Callum Lang and Alfie Devine, who made past season's indebtedness determination from Tottenham Hotspur imperishable successful the Lilywhites' astir important summertime business, got connected the scoresheet successful the 2nd fractional and whitethorn play from the outset connected Friday.

Cambridge United should besides rotate again for Friday's crippled arsenic Harris continues to hole his squad for the commencement of the League One season.

They person already taken steps to fortify the squad too, with Callum Stead, Patrick Bauer and Isaac Heath arriving, portion striker Gassan Ahadme has returned connected indebtedness aft hitting 11 goals successful 29 league games for the nine successful his past spell successful 2023-24.

Defender Jack Perry is the U's' latest summation and has joined up with the squad pursuing his indebtedness power from Coventry City, and helium whitethorn beryllium fixed a accidental to diagnostic successful the backmost 4 that topped League Two's antiaircraft charts past clip around.

Preston North End imaginable starting lineup:

Iversen; Offiah, Gibson, Lindsay; Potts, Devine, McCann, Vukcevic; Lang, Osmajic, Erabi

Cambridge United imaginable starting lineup:

Eastwood; Bennett, Bauer, Watts; Bennett, Mpanzu, Knight, Bradshaw; Lavery, Ahadme, Stead

We say: Preston North End 2-1 Cambridge United

As pre-season ramps up, some teams are expected to rotate passim Friday's friendly, but Preston should person the superior prime and extent to telephone connected and whitethorn travel retired arsenic constrictive winners successful pugnacious conditions successful Spain.

For information investigation of the astir apt results, scorelines and much for this lucifer delight click here.