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Sunderland will entertain Wigan Athletic at the Stadium of Light in the EFL Championship on Saturday.
Sunderland vs Wigan Athletic Preview
Sunderland’s return to the Championship has not been glamorous. After four seasons in League One, they earned promotion via the playoffs but their campaign has so far gotten off to a rocky start. The Black Cats have won only four games out of 13 outings, losing five and sharing the spoils four times.
After a four-match winless run, coach Tony Mowbray is in dire need of maximum points to ease the tension and dynamize his campaign. A win over ninth-placed Athletic Wigan would close their two-point gap and could move Sunderland into the top 10 from 13th position. It’s unclear how the absence of the sidelined Ellis Simms will affect that mission.
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Wigan Athletic have fared only slightly better, with five wins, four stalemates and four defeats to make a show of after 13 rounds of games. Their fifth Championship experience since 2013-14 has avoided chaos so far thanks in part to Will Keane’s input. The centre-forward has scored five times, heralding his 27-goal haul from last season.
After back-to-back losses against Hull City and Cardiff City, the Latics got back to winning ways with a 1-0 humbling of Blackburn Rovers on Tuesday. The visitors are injury-free ahead of their trip to Sunderland. They will be looking to get even with the hosts for the defeats suffered during their last two clashes.
Sunderland vs Wigan Athletic Head-to-Head and Key Numbers
- In their last five clashes, Sunderland prevailed three times as opposed to two for Wigan Athletic.
- Sunderland have defeated Wigan Athletic four times in their 10 meetings so far at the Stadium of Light.
- Sunderland have won only once in their last four home matches, drawing twice and losing once.
- Wigan Athletic have defeated Sunderland four times and held them twice at the Stadium of Light across 10 clashes.
- Sunderland have won once in their last five matches, lost once and drawn three times while Wigan Athletic have been victorious twice, losing three times.
Sunderland vs Wigan Athletic Prediction
The hosts have the psychological advantage going into the meeting following their two previous away wins and will hope to come first once again.
The visitors are conscious of the fact that they could be overhauled by six other teams if they stumble in Sunderland.
Sunderland are bent on winning the home clash ahead of their difficult trip to face seventh-placed Blackburn Rovers, and we expect the home team to prevail.
Prediction: Sunderland 1-0 Wigan Athletic
Sunderland vs Wigan Athletic Betting Tips
Tip 1: Result – Sunderland
Tip 2: Game to have over 2.5 goals – No
Tip 3: Sunderland to score first – Yes
Tip 4: Wigan Athletic to score - No
