Wigan Athletic travel to face league leaders Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough this Saturday in a tough League One assignment. The Latics sit 24th in the table with just three points from their opening five matches, nine points behind their hosts.
Wigan's form has been inconsistent, with two wins and three losses in their last five games across all competitions. Their most recent outing was a heavy 4-0 home defeat to Stockport County last weekend. Before that, they secured a 3-1 victory over Milton Keynes Dons.
The team that started against Stockport last time out featured James Whitworth in goal behind a back four of James Carragher, Frazer Burns, Matt Fox and Adam Harris. Callum Gray and Max Power were in midfield, with Charlie Barrett, Jonny Weir and Ryan Walsh supporting striker Dara Costelloe. Manager Shaun Maloney will be assessing his options after the heavy loss.
Sheffield Wednesday are in formidable form, having won their last three league games. They beat Peterborough United 2-1 away last time out and put seven past Bromley at home in late August. Their squad includes experienced campaigners like Barry Bannan and Liam Cooper. Wigan will need to be defensively solid to contain an attack that has scored 11 goals in its last three league outings. The full squad details for both teams are available.
This match kicks off at 3pm local time on Saturday, 12 September.
Wigan Athletic's poor start is their joint-worst in the 21st century, according to BBC statistics. The Latics have taken just three points from their opening five games, a record only matched in the 2019-20 season. Their recent form is LWLLL, with five goals scored and eleven conceded this campaign. The BBC also reports that Wigan have lost their last five visits to Hillsborough, with the last three all finishing 1-0 to Sheffield Wednesday.
