Wigan vs Barnsley
Tuesday 18th February 2014
Kick-off 7.45pm
The Reds travel to the DW Stadium in an attempt to earn what would be their first ever league win over Wigan.
Currently, Barnsley are 23rd in the league after Saturday’s dramatic draw at Doncaster Rovers.
Despite being relegated from the Premier League last year, Wigan only sit ninth and haven’t lived up to the expectations of being favourites for a quick return to the top flight.
Wigan were in action over the weekend, although not in the league. Last year’s FA Cup win seems to have given them extra belief for this year and on Saturday they knocked out Premier League strugglers Cardiff.
Barnsley will go into Tuesday’s fixture with a positive mentality after rescuing a draw late on at Yorkshire rivals Doncaster on Saturday.
After taking the lead in the derby, Doncaster fought back and put themselves in the driver’s seat before Nick Proschwitz claimed his second of the game with only one minute of regular time left to play.
Record
This will be only the seventh time that Barnsley have ever squared up against Wigan.
Barnsley wins over Wigan- 1 (League Cup)
Wigan wins over Barnsley- 4
Draws- 2
Memory Lane
The reverse fixture of this game back at Oakwell was the opener to the campaign in August. As the newly relegated side, Wigan were favourites and came to Oakwell with their FA Cup triumph still fresh in their minds.
The confidence showed as Wigan played out what seemed to be an easy victory over ten-man Barnsley. Goals from FA Cup match winner Ben Watson and Grant Holt made Wigan look comfortable that day and two in the last 10 minutes from Leon Barnett and Shaun Maloney sealed the deal after Dale Jennings was red carded.
Barnsley’s only win over Wigan came in the League Cup in the 1990/91 season, the Tykes won the first leg of the fixture 1-0 before losing the second leg by the same score. That match was then decided on by penalties which saw Barnsley emerge victorious.
Players to watch
Nick Proschwitz was the man of the moment for the Reds on Saturday, his two goals helped Barnsley to earn a draw against their rivals.
Since joining on loan from Premier League Hull, Proschwitz has already scored as many goals for Barnsley as he had for his parent club.
Despite where Barnsley are in the league, Reds boss Danny Wilson will be happy that both his strikers have been in the goals of late.
Ben Watson made history for Wigan last year as his goal saw them see of Manchester City at Wembley in the FA Cup final.
His good form has followed him into this season and he has continued to be a vital part of Wigan’s team.
On Saturday Watson scored from 25 yards to seal the cup win against Cardiff before being substituted, presumably to be rested for Tuesday.
His presence in midfield could be the difference between the sides as Wigan are still looking to bring their cup form into the league.
Team News
Brek Shea is hopeful to feature tonight after suffering with illness earlier this week, Jacob Mellis is still suspended so will miss out, as will Bobby Hassell who still hasn’t recovered from a calf injury.
Several Barnsley players are also looking to push for a place tonight, such as the likes of Liam Lawrence who is still waiting for his opportunity in a Barnsley shirt.
Nicky Maynard looks likely to play for the Latics after missing out last week through ineligibility. James McArthur will miss out because of a virus, and Nick Powell has a hamstring injury.
League Form
Barnsley
D - (A) Doncaster 2-2
D - (H) Ipswich 2-2
L - (A) Sheffield Wednesday 1-0
D- (H) Blackburn Rovers 2-2
W- (H) Blackpool 2-0
Wigan
W- (A) Sheffield Wednesday 3-0
L- (A) Huddersfield 1-0
W- (H) Charlton 2-1
D- (A) Middlesbrough 0-0
L- (A) Doncaster 3-0
Betting
Barnsley win: 5/1
Wigan win: 4/7
Draw: 13/5
1st goal scorer: Nicky Maynard 4/1 Chris O’Grady 7/1
Officials
Referee- Nigel Miller
Assistant Referees- Paul Marsden & Simon Mather
Fourth Official- Andy Scregg
