Preview: Blackburn Rovers Vs Wigan Athletic

It could also be argued that if Wigan fail to beat Blackburn, and other results go against us, that our European hopes will be ended at Ewood Park.

Wigan boss Paul Jewell admits that just finishing as high as possible is the aim now, even if that means not qualifying for the UEFA Cup.

He said: "I think in the Premiership, with their beingso much prize money at stake in every position,every game is big, but finishing one or two places higher can make a lot of difference."

Johansson: Could play after impressive performances in the reserves

Jewell has named the same starting line-up for the last four games, despite some poor performances. He also admitted that recent performances have been below par, and that the best performance of date came at home in the 2-1 defeat to Manchester United.

"I don't think we were very good against Sunderland, we were competent against Manchester City and were hit and miss against West Ham, although i thought we did enough to win the game."

The Wigan boss could be tempted into making changes, with Andreas Johansson again scoring, David Thompson impressing and Ryan Taylor making his comeback, playing the full 90 minutes. Monday could come to early for Taylor though, as he will probably have a few more run outs in the reserves before he is back in contention for a first team place.

The most probable respone to the West Ham defeat however will be Jewell playing the same starting line up for the fifth conescutive game, giving the players a chance to redeem themselves for their recent poor performances. However, there could be a change in goal as Mike Pollitt could play from the start despite John Filan recovering from his eye injury.

Injury wise, only the injury prone Steve Mcmillan is out for the game on Monday. Blackburn only have Amorouso out deffinately, with star striker Craig Bellamy and on-loan striker Sinama-Pongolle expected to be passed fit.

Ones to Watch

Blackburns two most dangerous players are without a doubt Mortem Gamst Pederson and Craig Bellamy, if these two play to their full ability it will mean a hard task for our defenders. Steven Reid can also be difficult at long range, as we saw first hand at the JJB Stadium.

Pundits Predictions

Mark Lawrenson has gone for a Wigan victory. A big surprise indeed, giving Wigans great away form as the reason for going for a Wigan 2-1 victory. This is usually a bad omen for us, as when he goes for us to win, more times than not we go on to lose.

My Prediction

Sadly i do not show Lawrensons enthusiasm. Although i don't believe we will lose, i think Blackburns great home form means that we will see a draw on Monday. Both teams will go out and attack so i predict a few goals for both teams as well.

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