Preston made a significant stride towards the Championship play-off zone by securing a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Norwich at Carrow Road, narrowing the gap to just five points.
Striker Milutin Osmajic's early goal proved to be the difference in a tightly contested match, where Preston had several opportunities to score more goals but failed to capitalize.
Norwich, who missed a chance to move into the top six with a win, struggled to create scoring chances throughout the game and could not argue with the final outcome.
Preston took the lead within five minutes as they pressured Norwich's build-up play, leading to Mads Frokjaer setting up Osmajic for a well-taken goal past the goalkeeper.
Despite losing captain Kenny McLean to illness before the match, Norwich's attempts to equalize were met with strong defensive blocks, including a timely intervention from Ryan Porteous to deny Josh Sargent.
Throughout the game, Preston continued to threaten, with chances for Ryan Ledson and Osmajic, while Norwich struggled to test the opposition keeper, managing only one shot on target in the first half.
As Norwich made tactical changes in the second half to spark a comeback, Preston almost doubled their lead through Kaine Kesler-Hayden, who narrowly missed the target with a shot from a crowded penalty area.
Both teams had opportunities in the later stages of the match, with Shane Duffy and Borja Sainz coming close for Norwich, and Liam Lindsay almost securing the win for Preston with a header that narrowly missed the target.
Although Norwich pushed for a late equalizer, their efforts were in vain as Preston held on for a well-deserved victory at Carrow Road.