Prediction: Wigan vs Stoke

3rd December 2010

Wigan remained in the relegation zone as they were beaten by bottom-placed West Ham, making this a must-win game for the Latics. Stoke, on the other hand, continued the impressive run of results as they secured a deserved draw against Manchester City, with one point from that game helping them remain in the top part of the table.

Soccer betting experts predicted Wigan a difficult season and that assessment looked to be spot on after the Latics lost two opening games, conceding 10 goals in the process. Roberto Martinez’s side managed to recover from the dismal start but their good run was short lived and they are now back to where they belong after losing four of the last six games. The 3:1 defeat in which Wigan were completely outplayed by weak West Ham side proved the Latics are going through a very rough patch at the moment, and they have every reason to fear the clash with in-form Stoke. Roberto Martinez not only has to worry about how to wake his players up after the disappointing defeat at West Ham, but he also faces a severe selection headache, making matters even worse before this all important game. Hugo Rodallega, Victor Moses, James McCarthy, Emerson Boyce and Gary Caldwell are all out with injuries, while Mauro Bosseli and Franco Di Santo are rated doubtful, meaning the boss will have to choose from a pretty small squad.

The mere fact Stoke sit in 8th place after 15 Premiership rounds shows how well Tony Pulis’ men have been playing this season and I’m sure nobody can say the Potters haven’t deserved such a high place in the standings. Interesting thing about Stoke is that their season can be divided into four intervals, during which they were either losing or winning in series, with only few draws in between. Following their latest five-match losing run, the Potters won three straight Premier League games before outplaying Manchester City only to earn one point thanks to an injury time goal. They, nonetheless, enter this game in good spirits and will try to record the second successive away victory after beating West Brom 3:0 two weeks back, and I definitely wouldn’t be surprised if they succeed. Tony Pulis will be without Marc Wilson and Mamadou Sidibe, while Jermaine Pennant and Andy Wilkinson remain injury doubts.

Conclusion

While Wigan are struggling to cope with so many first team regulars on the sidelines, Stoke look as impressive as ever and they have a good chance of getting all three points from this match. The pressure will be solely on the Latics in this clash and that is something a very good Stoke side will know how to take advantage of.

Verdict: Away win Stoke (2)

Best Odds: 7/4

Bookmaker: 888sport