Promotion-chasing Wigan Athletic make the short trip to Morecambe looking to take advantage of one of their many games in hand in League One.
The fourth-placed Latics sit just four points adrift of leaders Wycombe Wanderers having played five matches fewer, while Morecambe currently occupy a place in the relegation zone.
Match preview
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When some teams - their rivals to be more precise - have played five matches more than them at this stage of the season, you have to wonder how Wigan will handle the hectic schedule which is about to come their way.
Nevertheless, despite only just reaching the halfway point of their league schedule, Leam Richardson will be completely satisfied with their current situation, aware that they are in prime position to earn promotion should they keep collecting wins on a regular basis.
Saturday's 2-1 victory at Doncaster Rovers extended their unbeaten record to eight matches in League One and 14 games in all competitions, a streak which started on October 30.
The Latics were far from their best in seeing off the worst team in the division, goals from Max Power and Will Keane keeping their side on track for a return to the second tier.
Wigan have now not suffered a league defeat away from the DW Stadium since the opening game of the season, a run lasting 10 games, and they have prevailed in all but one of those fixtures.
In sharp contrast, Morecambe have only won one of their last seven games, that victory coming by a 4-3 scoreline against Doncaster when they had found themselves three goals down at the break.
Stephen Robinson would have hoped for more from Saturday's game at AFC Wimbledon, but a goalless draw at one of their relegation rivals cannot be perceived to be a bad result.
The Shrimps have also lost just one of their last four games in the third tier, while pushing Tottenham Hotspur all the way in the FA Cup is still fresh in the memory.
A game against the leaders is not the ideal fixture when you desperately require points to move outside of the bottom four, but Morecambe have shown enough during their last two games to suggest that they have the potential to make things difficult for the visitors.
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Team News
Robinson was quick to praise his side for their point at Wimbledon, a suggestion that he may be prepared to stick with the same starting XI.
Ryan Cooney and Alfie McCalmont appear most likely to be handed a recall if Robinson chooses to introduce fresh legs into the team.
With a long run-in ahead of them, Richardson could make changes to his Wigan starting lineup, particularly with no alterations being made before the 81st minute on Saturday.
Thelo Aasgaard, the hero from the FA Cup win over Blackburn Rovers, may potentially get a run out having remained as an unused substitute at the weekend.
Gwion Edwards will also be under consideration, as will new addition Josh Magennis, but Richardson will want to find a balance between momentum and keeping players fresh.
Morecambe possible starting lineup:
Carson; McLaughlin, O'Connor, Bedeau, Leigh; McLoughlin, Diagouraga, Wildig; Ayunga, Stockton, Gnahoua
Wigan Athletic possible starting lineup:
Amos; Darikwa, Whatmough, Watts, Pearce; Power, Naylor; Edwards, Lang, McClean; Keane
We say: Morecambe 0-2 Wigan Athletic
Wigan are the clear favourites to prevail from this contest, and we can see nothing other than an away win. It may be more efficient than ruthless, but Richardson will be satisfied with any kind of victory on the North-West coast.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Wigan Athletic win with a probability of 56.47%. A draw had a probability of 22.8% and a win for Morecambe had a probability of 20.75%.
The most likely scoreline for a Wigan Athletic win was 0-1 with a probability of 10.61%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (9.88%) and 0-2 (9.72%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (10.79%), while for a Morecambe win it was 1-0 (5.89%). The actual scoreline of 1-2 was predicted with a 9.9% likelihood. Our team at Sports Mole and our data analysis both correctly predicted that Wigan Athletic would win this match.
