David Moyes returns to Deepdale on Wednesday for a Carabao Cup second-round tie with a personal edge, the Everton manager having begun his managerial career at Preston North End before spells in charge of both clubs shaped the fixture’s more recent history.
Moyes lost 2-0 to Everton in the FA Cup while in charge of Preston in January 2000, then won 2-0 as Everton boss when the sides last met competitively in the EFL Cup third round in October 2004. Everton have not been back to Deepdale in a competitive fixture since.
Moyes’ side head into the match on the back of a 2-0 win over Crystal Palace that ended a four-year run of losing their opening Premier League fixture of the season, with goals from Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Thierno Barry.
Preston, by contrast, have made a difficult start to a 12th consecutive season in the Championship, losing back-to-back league matches to Bolton Wanderers and Wolverhampton Wanderers after needing penalties to see off Huddersfield Town in the first round. Everton have never won the League Cup in its 66-year history and have failed to progress beyond the third round in eight of the last 11 seasons, a record Moyes will be keen to start putting right.
Preston North End vs Everton – Match preview and team news
Date: Wednesday, 26 August 2026
Kick-off: 20:00 BST
Venue: Deepdale
Last meeting: Everton 2-0 Preston North End, EFL Cup third round, October 2004
Team news
Preston North End
Lewis Gibson is suspended following his red card against Huddersfield and is also managing a groin issue, while fellow defender Odel Offiah missed the Wolves defeat with a groin problem of his own. Jusef Erabi, who scored a dramatic debut equaliser against Huddersfield, is a doubt after picking up a knock last weekend. With Milutin Osmajic having completed a permanent move to Genoa, 17-year-old George Gryba could be handed a start up front if Erabi is unavailable.
Everton
Tim Iroegbunam faces several weeks out with an adductor strain, and summer signing Christian Norgaard is not yet fully fit and will miss the trip to Deepdale. James Garner made a surprise substitute return against Palace after recovering from a hernia operation but it is unclear whether he will be ready to start. Moyes has a strong pool of options to rotate from, with several players who started on the bench against Palace pushing for inclusion.
Form
Preston North End
Heckingbottom’s side are yet to win in 90 minutes this season, needing a penalty shootout to overcome Huddersfield in the cup before back-to-back defeats to Bolton and Wolves in the league. The manager suggested after the Wolves defeat that there was a clear gap in quality between his side and their opponents, underlining the need for late additions before next week’s transfer deadline. Preston have reached at least the third round of this competition in seven of their last 11 campaigns, offering some recent cup pedigree.
Everton
Moyes’ side head into the tie with genuine momentum after ending their run of poor opening weekends with victory over Crystal Palace. The performance was not flawless, with the manager admitting his side “could have easily been a couple of goals down” during a shaky opening spell. Everton have won just one of their last six meetings with Preston, though their record at this specific stage of the competition remains strong historically.
Predicted lineups
Preston North End predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Nicholls; Valentin, Storey, Lindsay, Vukcevic; Leroy, McCann; Lang, Devine, Burgzorg; Erabi
Everton predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Travers; Patterson, O’Brien, Keane, Mykolenko; Hackney, Armstrong; Dibling, Alcaraz, Johnson; Beto
How to watch Preston North End vs Everton?
The match will be broadcast live in the United Kingdom on Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Football and Sky Sports Ultra HDR.
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