• Watford v Wigan Athletic
• Sky Bet Championship
• Vicarage Road
• Saturday March 18, 3pm KO
• Yellow and black home kit

• Referee: Graham Scott
• Assistant Referees: Derek Eaton and Steven Meredith
• Fourth Official: David Rock

Wigan come into the clash at The Vic with everything to play for, sitting at the bottom of the table, six points adrift from safety and without a victory since a 1-0 triumph over fellow strugglers Huddersfield on February 11.

Ex-Latic Shaun Maloney was appointed as the club’s third manager of the 2022/23 campaign in late January - following the dismissals of Leam Richardson and Kolo Toure - and though they have ground out five draws since, they have found wins hard to come by and face an uphill battle to retain their second-tier status.

• Watford have won their last three league matches against Wigan Athletic, claiming all three points in both games in 2014/15 and in the reverse fixture this season.

• Wigan have never won an away league game against Watford in six previous visits to Vicarage Road (D3 L3).

• The Hornets are unbeaten in each of their last 11 Championship games against sides starting the day in the relegation zone (W9 D2), winning each of their last five by an aggregate score of 10-1.

For a full statistical breakdown, check out Stats Buzz: Wigan Athletic In Numbers.

Head Coach Chris Wilder reported no fresh injury concerns following Tuesday night’s win over Birmingham City, with a late call to be made on Ismaïla Sarr’s involvement in the game. Midfielder Hamza Choudhury is set to serve the final match of his two-game suspension.

Wigan centre-back Omar Rekik could return to the side after serving a one-game ban. Jason Kerr and Martin Kelly are both sidelined for the remainder of the campaign.

Chris Wilder, Watford Head Coach:

“There’s been a great mood around the camp over the last few days, which is always the case when you win a game of football.

“We’re in a good place, and we’re all looking forward to Saturday, but this is as big as it gets now because we know we can’t afford many slip-ups. We’re back at home in front of our supporters, and it would be great to get a result to end a week that started poorly on a good note.

“It’s been a difficult period for them [Wigan], but they’ve stayed competitive and they are dangerous. They’ve never really been thumped by anyone, and they’ve picked up a lot of draws so we know it’s going to be tricky.”

Shaun Maloney, Wigan Athletic Manager:

“We know we have to win games in this situation. Draws aren’t going to be enough for us - we’re trying desperately to win games, and we’ll continue to do that.”

Overall:

Won: 7
Drawn: 5
Lost: 5

Last Six:

October 2022: Wigan Athletic 0-1 Watford (Championship)
March 2015: Wigan Athletic 0-2 Watford (Championship)
December 2014: Watford 2-1 Wigan Athletic (Championship)
March 2014: Wigan Athletic 2-1 Watford (Championship)
September 2013: Watford 1-0 Wigan Athletic (Championship)
February 2007: Watford 1-1 Wigan Athletic (Premier League)

João Pedro’s late header earned Watford a deserved 1-0 win over Wigan on their first visit to the DW Stadium in over seven years, earlier this season in October 2022.