Under 2.5 goals at Derby vs Preston 5/6 for Tuesday’s EFL Cup contest

Competition: EFL Cup

Market: Under 2.5 goals

Odds: 5/6 @ 888sport

Two Championship sides who have shown some worrying issues in front of goal, Derby and Preston will face off at an empty Pride Park on EFL Cup duties on Tuesday evening.

Starting with the hosts, although Derby might have made it clear that they had a play-off finish at the top of their agenda after returning to action back in June, things have really not gone to plan for Phillip Cocu. Signing off the extended 2019/2020 campaign by collecting just three points over their final five Championship contests, the former PSV boss has also seen his side endure what has been a difficult summer of preparations. Failing to win any of their pre-season contests and also needing penalties to come past League Two debutants Barrow in the last round of this year’s EFL Cup on home soil, Derby also opened the new Championship campaign in real worrying fashion. Once again drawing another blank at Pride Park over the weekend, the Rams were hit with a sluggish 2-0 defeat at home against Reading and have now failed to find the net in their last four appearances on the spin.

As for the visitors, while Preston might have received some praise after landing pre-season stalemates against the Premier League duo of Burnley and Sheffield United, Alex Neil’s men failed to drag that momentum into the 2020/2021 Championship campaign over the weekend. Failing to create much of a spark and missing out on a real opportunity at Deepdale, the one-time Norwich boss saw his side hit with a 1-0 defeat at home against Swansea and we should be in for what is another low-scoring encounter when Preston turn their attention back to EFL Cup duties on Tuesday evening. With all nine of the previous meetings between the two sides seeing under 2.5 goals by the final whistle, it should also be noted that seven of those showdowns have been decided by just a single strike. In a contest between two sides struggling to find a clinical edge, chances should come at a real premium.

Bet: Under 2.5 goals at Derby vs Preston 5/6 for Tuesday’s EFL Cup contest @ 888sport