English Premier
2011-11-06 - Wolves vs Wigan
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football : English Premier League
Sunday 6 November 2011 - Kickoff 1:30pm
This game is live on TV
Wolves
Mick McCarthy told the media this week that he has the full backing of the Wolves board despite the teams poor run of form and the managers blast at the 'mindless idiots' that seem to come out of the surface as soon as Wolves hit a bad run of form. While I don't think McCarthy is likely to be fired after the job he has done at Molineux, you know the fans are going to very vocal if the team fails to perform again this week.
It seems so long ago now that all was positive at Wolves as they won their first 2 League games and then earned a credible draw at Aston Villa. Those early 7 points had Wolves sitting in the top 4, but they have only added 1 more point in the last 7 League games and that leaves them just 1 place out of the relegation zone and 3 points clear of Wigan who are bottom. Wolves are 1-1-3 at home, scoring 5 goals and conceding 9.
Wolves have lost 7 of their last 9 games in all competitions, and have only won 1 of those games against Millwall in the Carling Cup here. The team had lost 3 League games in a row at Molineux, and the fans were completely on McCarthy's back as they went 0-2 down to Swansea before a late fightback earned a draw in that game. Wolves have conceded at least 2 goals in each of their last 7 League games.
Steven Fletcher is a big loss for Wolves and will remain absent until after the international break. Jody Craddock could be back in the squad if he can pass a late fitness test, but Kevin Foley and Ronald Zubar are long term absentees.
Wigan
While the Wolves fans are openly showing their disdain at the teams performances, the Wigan fans are much more behind their loyal manager Roberto Martinez and there is no danger of him being fired from his post despite Wigan's terrible start to the new season. The lack of goals is a real worry for Martinez, while they haven't really replaced the magic of Charles N'Zogbia who could always produce game winning performances for them last season.
All of that means Wigan have only picked up 5 points so far this season, all of those coming in games against the promoted sides and they have lost all 7 games against sides that were Premier League sides last season. Their 6 total goals this season is the lowest in the League, while they are 0-1-4 away from home, scoring 1 goal and conceding 9... Suffice to say they are the lowest away scorers this season so far.
A horrible run of form has seen Wigan lose 8 games in a row in all competitions, although they will feel a little unfortunate not to have picked up something from their last 2 games at Newcastle United and at home against Fulham. Wigan's lack of goals means they have only scored 1 in the last 4 games, while they have lost 5 consecutive away games since a 0-0 draw with Swansea.
Gary Caldwell will miss this game as he serves a suspension, while Mohamed Diame will miss out through injury. There are no other injury concerns for Roberto Martinez.
Head to Head
Wigan have won the last 3 Premier League games against Wolves, including 2 in a row at Molineux.
The Latics won here 1-2 last season and were 0-2 winners the season before last.
Prediction
This is going to be a pressure filled match for both teams, but perhaps more so for Wolves and I think that could give the edge to Wigan to at least get something out of the game.
I hate calling games 'must win' at this early stage of the season, but I think Wigan will already be in an extremely sticky situation if they lose this game and find themselves at least 5 points from safety come Sunday evening. Dave Whelan has supported Roberto Martinez and that is unlikely to change regardless of the result in this game, but that still doesn't mean the side won't be some pressure.
After watching these teams in recent games, I can't help but think Wigan have been unfortunate not to have more points from their last couple of games, while Wolves look like a side with shattered confidence, especially in their defending.
Wigan should also feel good about this stadium after having a couple of successful visits here in the last couple of seasons, and I am going to have a small interest on them to at least avoid defeat here.
Wolves don't really deserve to be evens against any team at the moment especially considering the way they have been defending of late and so I will take against them.
The Statistics :
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The Pick :
Wolves 1-2 Wigan
