Huddersfield Town will look to bounce back from the setback of a stoppage-time defeat to Middlesbrough when they host Wigan Athletic tomorrow night.
Chris Powell's first game in charge of the Terriers looked set to yield a 1-1 stalemate after Jonathan Stead's late leveller but an inexplicable foul from Tommy Smith on Adam Reach presented Grant Leadbitter with the chance to steal the spoils from the penalty spot, which he gleefully accepted.
It proved a baptism of fire for Powell, who witnessed his side outplayed by a comfortable Boro outfit and admitted after the game that plenty of work has to be done to make Town competitive in a tough-looking Championship.
The visit of Uwe Rosler's men represents a second home game in quick succession and a chance to lift what is becoming an increasingly weighty monkey on the back of securing a first home win since March 1 when they routed Barnsley 5-0.
The Terriers trailed to a stunning first-half free-kick from Leadbitter but the deficit could, and perhaps should, have been greater with Kike going close on a few occasions and substitute Jelle Vossen also whistling an effort just past the post before a frantic finale saw Stead equalise and Leadbitter net his second.
Including the Barnsley thrashing, Town have won just three times at the John Smith's Stadium in 2014 and one of those victories actually came against the Latics, with former midfielder Adam Clayton's late goal sealing a 1-0 triumph back in February.
If Town required any other sort of positive statistic to restore confidence, then the fact Wigan have lost each and every one of their four away games so far this term in all competitions surely bodes well.
And here is everything you need to know about the game as Town look to recover from their late setback and move up the Championship table.
Kick-off
Huddersfield Town v Wigan Athletic (7.45pm)
The likely line-ups
Huddersfield Town (4-4-2): Smithies; Smith, Hudson, Lynch, Robinson; Butterfield, Peltier (capt), Coady, Ward; Stead, Wells.
Wigan Athletic (3-5-2): Carson; Boyce (capt), Ramis, Kiernan; Perch, Cowie, Kvist, Huws, Taylor; Delort, McManaman.
Team news
Huddersfield Town: Town boss Powell looks set to be without James Vaughan after he had a scan on the calf injury which saw him come off after just 26 minutes during the 2-1 defeat to Boro.
Lee Peltier also picked up a knock at the weekend but could take his place at the base of midfield once more, with Jonathan Hogg having been on the sidelines for a prolonged spell.
Anthony Gerrard (calf) and Oscar Gobern (toe) are also still absent.
Wigan Athletic: Rosler's main concern is the fitness of playmaker Emyr Huws, who will be monitored, but Ben Watson (broken leg) and Chris McCann (knee) are long-term casualties.
Martyn Waghorn, Shaun Maloney and new signing Adam Forshaw are all in contention to come into the starting XI.
Ones to watch
Huddersfield Town: Nahki Wells - With Vaughan's fitness doubtful at best, the pressure once again falls on the shoulders of Town's pint-sized striker to take on the responsibility of finding the net.
Stead looked ineffective despite his goal on Saturday but Wells' pace and clever evasive movement can worry the Latics defence.
Wigan Athletic: Andy Delort - After a lot of haggling over a fee and plenty of fanfare about his signing, Delort's debut was a largely underwhelming one in his new side's 3-1 defeat at Blackburn Rovers.
He is tasked with providing the firepower they have lacked since being relegated from the Premier League and he is strong, quick and good on the ball with an eye for goal having netted 24 goals in 36 games last season to help former side Tours win promotion to Ligue 1.
What the bookies say
Town are once again considered the outsiders at 19/10, with their abject recent home form likely to have been taken into account.
But Wigan Athletic are only narrowly the favourites at 7/5, presumably because of their inauspicious away performances so far this term.
The draw can be backed at 23/10 as an outside bet while the shortest odds on a scoreline is 5/1 for a 1-1 draw.
Last time they met
The two teams came face to face as recently as February when ex-midfielder Clayton struck the winner in the 85th minute to seal a 1-0 win, one of just three triumphs at the John Smith's Stadium for Town in 2014.
His 20-yard strike zipped past Ali Al-Habsi at his near post to hand Town all three points.
In the reverse fixture, Town fell to a 2-1 defeat earlier in the season as goals from Leon Barnett and Nick Powell sandwiched another former Town midfield man Oliver Norwood's strike right on the stroke of half-time.
Watch: Town reporter Doug Thomson on Town's test against Wigan
Match facts
Head-to-Head
- The 1-0 success in February was the first time Town have beaten the Latics across the last seven meetings in all competitions.
- Rosler's side have never won at Huddersfield in the league. Their sole win on Town's patch from 13 meetings in all competitions was a 4-1 success in the FA Cup in February 2013.
Huddersfield Town
- The Terriers' start to the season - points-wise - is their worst in the second tier since 2000/2001, when they were relegated having also taken just four points from their opening six games.
Wigan Athletic
- The travelling Latics have lost all four of their away games this season in all competitions, including a shock 2-1 Capital One Cup defeat to Burton Albion.
What the managers say
Chris Powell: "We need to improve.
"We should have got a point against a competitive side, and we worked ever so hard to get back into the game.
"It was a cheap way to give them three points, and it wasn’t a danger because the ball was going away from goal.
"Whether it was through a dip in concentration or a rush of blood, Tommy can’t give away fouls like that.
"We have to learn lessons, but we can’t dwell on this game. We have to bounce back fast."
Uwe Rosler: "At the moment we’re a team that plays our style of football and we believe in that.
"Away from home, there will always be moments when you come under pressure and that’s natural and then we concede.
"At home it’s different as they back off and we bombard and overpower them and get the first goal and the second goal."
Man in the middle
Sebastian Stockbridge (Tyneside). He has only ever taken charge of one Championship game as a relative newcomer and his most high-profile encounter was a 2012/2013 Blue Square Bet Premier play-off semi-final second leg game between Kidderminster and Wrexham.
He has officiated four games so far this season, including Blackburn Rovers' 1-0 Capital One Cup loss to Scunthorpe United and has issued nine yellow cards in that time, while his previous three seasons as a referee have resulted in a staggering 20 red cards, working out at an average of 6.7 per season.
Tom says
"The mood around the John Smith's Stadium in the immediate aftermath of the 2-1 defeat to Middlesbrough was a deflated one, with fans left dismayed by the performance and gutted by the result.
"One good thing to come out of it is that this game offers an opportunity for the team and individuals to put right their wrongs almost immediately against a side who have wobbled away from home so far.
"The Latics test will be a good indicator of where Town are headed this season and they must start to pick up points sooner rather than later or risk being cut adrift.
"Already there appears to be a divide growing in the Championship and, but for the frankly comical goings-on at Fulham and Blackpool respectively - teamed with Bolton Wanderers' turgid performances under Dougie Freedman - Town could be in a much worse state of affairs.
"Powell will need time with this team to get them playing his brand of football and to iron out any flaws that may exist but, ultimately, there could be no accounting for the sheer brilliance of Middlesbrough's opener on Saturday, nor the individual error which saw the Teessiders win late on.
"I expect the fans to really get onside with the players and back Powell's attempts to restore this side's brittle confidence and I think he may get a reaction against the Latics.
"I also believe Town will benefit from having played the 3-5-2 formation Wigan are likely to setup in and this could be key in finding the formula to scoring at one end and keeping the ball out at the other.
"It may not be enough for all three points because Wigan have a vast array of attacking resources, but I thoroughly expect Town to stop the rot with a draw. 1-1."
