By Dominic Medcalf
High-flying Wigan who sit comfortably second in the table travel to Bloomfield Road to face newly-promoted Blackpool.
A win for the Latics could see them go top of the table, if Shrewsbury fail to beat Fleetwood Town. This however will be one of the toughest tests of the season so far for Wigan, as the Seasiders are unbeaten in 12 games at home.
Blackpool have a brilliant defensive record at home only conceding three goals this season. The only team to top that is opponents Wigan, with two goals conceded. Nick Powell will be a tough test for the Seasiders defence as the former Manchester United player has already scored seven goals this season.
Gary Bowyer heaped praise on the Wigan team before the two sides meet on October 21: “Cooky won’t thank me for saying it but they are the best team in this league. What he will hopefully thank me for saying is they’re the best team in this league because of how he coaches them along with his assistant Leam (Richardson) and how they play. That is only my opinion.”
Wigan are without striker Will Grigg, after he picked up an injury on Tuesday night in the 1-1 draw against Gillingham and he is expected to miss up to three weeks. Lee Evans, Christian Walton, Craig Morgan and Shaun MacDonald are still unavailable.
Blackpool also have injury concerns – midfielder Jimmy Ryan had to be replaced in the 2-1 win on Tuesday against Bury.
This is going to be the third time the teams have met this season. The Latics have come out victorious both times, knocking Blackpool out of the Carabao Cup and Checkatrade Trophy.