Ahahahahahahahahahaha there's only two of us come in here we only come in once a week and we'll both be at the game today! Anyway........ Although there are lots of aspects to the Stoke style thaI don't like I've never really agreed that they're a hoof and chase bunch as they're often portrayed in the media. I think they get characterised as that simply because they're so physical - and border on the thuggish. Particularly Pennant. They're capable of playing some good football through the middle of the park and the addition of Charlie Adam will probably improve them - though I don't expect to see him start today. Not even sure if he signed in time to make the bench? As usual with Wigan it's our unpredictability. Everything would suggest a home win - we've picked up where we left off last season and although we still look a bit stiff and lacking match fitness we're improving. Contrary to the mainstream media we've actually hung on to all our best players - bar Moses - and so we're playing with some continuity. Players that we've brought in mean we now have genuine competition for places across the pitch - hell, even Gomez has been playing pretty well! And what was interesting about Forest was that we played the same system with seven different players, and they played it as well as the first eleven. With Alcaraz being suspended expect Figueroa to play as the third defender, with Boyce and Beausejour on the flanks. McArthur and McCarthy will have their work cut out in the centre and it'll be interesting to see how Huth and Shawcross deal with Maloney passing through them. Kone vs those two will be crucial. I have to go for a home win though I always hate being confident - 3-1
Tell you what HP i`m going to make a prediction and put my beer money on it that home wln for me because even though i've always thought stoke as a team that will grind any team down searching for hole`s in your defence and maybe they have got charlie Adam but he only played is best football at Blackpool and decided he was to good to stay then went to anfield for one season and weather he was pushed or he left jump ship to Stoke. But for once we are playing good football at the start of the season and not leaving it to the end and with di santo shaun maloney and new boy kone up front how can we loose.
Oh yeah now I remember why everyone slags off Stoke, what a bunch of thugs. We played into their hands and ended up lucky to get a point, when we should have been out of sight. Dave Jones on for Beasusejour was a poor decision. We went back to the Wigan of last season in that once we got our noses in front we didn't seem to know whether to go for the killer goal or try and see it out, and ended up doing neither.
