Stoke City: Vital statistics

PREVIOUS MEETING

February 5, 2005

Wigan Athletic 0

Stoke City 1

(Noel-Williams,39)

A GAME many will best remember for the start of a wretchedly-long lay-off for John Eustace after he withdrew with a knee injury just after the break.

Stoke were already leading by that stage after a neat move climaxed with a rare strike from Gifton Noel-Williams six minutes before the break. Stoke's surprise win over a team destined for promotion not only halted a run of five straight league defeats, but sparked a subsequent sequence of four wins from the next five.

Wigan: Filan, Eaden, Baines (Graham, 82), Thome, Jackson, Teale (Johansson, 75), Bullard, Mahon, McCulloch, Roberts, Ellington.

Stoke: Simonsen, Buxton, Hall, Taggart, Hill, Asaba, Eustace (Henry, 47), Brammer, Clarke, Noel-Williams, Greenacre.

Attendance: 9,938.

FORM GUIDE

Wigan: LLLLW

Stoke: LWLWW

WHO WE'D LIKE TO SIGN

Amr Zaki: Eight goals in his first dozen appearances in this country, so no wonder they are queuing up for the Egyptian's signature once his loan runs out at Wigan.

WHO TO BOO

Emile Heskey: A poor man's Mama Sidibe.

MAN IN THE MIDDLE

Mike Riley (Yorks): All eyes on his handling of the game after Tony Pulis put him in the spotlight following Arsene Wenger's attack this week.

PROBABLE TEAMS

Wigan: Kirkland, Melchiot, Bramble, Boyce, Figueroa, Valencia, Palacios, Cattermole, Koumas, Heskey, Zaki.

Stoke: Sorensen, Griffin, Higginbotham, Shawcross, Ab Faye, Olofinjana, Diao, Am Faye, Delap, Sidibe, Fuller.

PREDICTION

THOMAS Sorensen shows his backbone with a late penalty save to ensure a 1-1 draw after Ricardo Fuller's earlier equaliser.

Zaki puts Wigan ahead with his ninth of the season.