Preview: Peterborough United vs. Wigan Athletic - prediction, team news, lineups

Both sides head into the weekend off the back of contrasting results, with the Posh claiming a third home win on the spin and the visitors suffering a narrow home defeat at the hands of Stevenage.

Match preview

Peterborough United booked their spot in the semi-finals of the EFL Trophy in style as they picked up a thrilling 3-1 victory over AFC Wimbledon at the Weston Homes Stadium on Tuesday.

Quick-fire goals from Malik Mothersille and Ephron Mason-Clarke put the hosts in the driver's seat inside the opening four minutes, and after Ryan Mclean pulled one back in the 89th minute to cause a late comeback scare, Ricky-Jade Jones struck in the fifth minute of stoppage time put the game to bed.

This was in keeping with their impressive run of results in the League One, where Peterborough are currently on a 12-game unbeaten streak, claiming eight wins and four draws since a 2-1 loss against Wigan in November's reverse fixture.

Having suffered a semi-final exit in the promotion playoff last season, the Posh have put themselves on course for automatic promotion this time around as they sit third in the League One table, level on 56 points with fourth-placed Derby County and just four points behind league leaders Portsmouth.

With 28 points from 13 home matches in the league, only Blackpool (33) and Bolton Wanderers (31) have picked up more points at home than Darren Ferguson's men, who have made the Weston Homes Stadium a tough ground to visit for any opposition.

Wigan Athletic, on the other hand, failed to move into the top half of the table as they fell to a somewhat disappointing 3-2 defeat against Stevenage at the DW Stadium last Saturday.

Josh Magennis and Thelo Aasgaard scored either side of Jamie Reid's 15th-minute equaliser to hand the hosts a first-half lead but Carl Piergianni and Louis Thompson scored in the final half-hour to hand Boro a hard-fought victory.

Shaun Maloney's side appeared to have turned a corner, winning each of their previous two outings, including a 1-0 victory over Reading on January 20 which saw their four-game winless run across all competitions come to an end.

Wigan have now lost 11 of their 29 League One matches so far while claiming 12 wins and six draws to collect 34 points and sit 13th in the table, seven points above the relegation zone.

While the Latics will be looking to return to winning ways this weekend and potentially kickstart a late push for the playoffs places, they have struggled to get going away from home in recent weeks.

Wigan head into the weekend without a win in five consecutive away games across all competitions, a run which saw them crash out of the EFL Trophy courtesy of a penalty-shootout loss at Doncaster Rovers on January 16.

Peterborough United League One form:

D

D

W

W

W

D

Peterborough United form (all competitions):

L

W

W

W

D

W

Wigan Athletic League One form:

W

D

D

W

W

L

Wigan Athletic form (all competitions):

L

D

L

W

W

L

Team News

Peterborough remain without the services of 20-year-old goalkeeper Will Blackmore, who had been sidelined since August 2023 through a severe injury.

He is joined on the Posh injury table by Ghanaian midfielder Kwame Poku, who has missed the last four matches since coming off injured against Charlton Athletic on January 13.

With his goal and assist against Wimbledon, Mason-Clarke now has 15 goal involvements in 27 League One matches and the 24-year-old will be one to keep an eye on.

As for Wigan, Maloney will be unable to call upon the services of Scottish midfielder Scott Smith, who is yet to make an appearance this year as he continues his spell on the sidelines.

The Latics recently completed the loan signing of Queens Park Rangers striker Charlie Kelman and we expect the 22-year-old to be involved in the matchday squad this weekend.

Peterborough United possible starting lineup:

Bilokapic; Katongo, Knight, Edwards, Crichlow; Fuchs, Collins; Ajiboye, Randall, Mason-Clarke; Mothersille

Wigan Athletic possible starting lineup:

Tickle; Kerr, Hughes, Chambers; Clare, Shaw, Smith, Jones; Smith, Aasgaard, Magennis

We say: Peterborough United 2-1 Wigan Athletic

While Wigan will be looking to return to winning ways, they are in for a tough 90 minutes against a spirited Peterborough side. The Posh have won their last three home games and we fancy them claiming all three points this weekend.

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