West Bromwich Albion will be looking to continue their charge towards the Premier League when they welcome Wigan Athletic to the Hawthorns on Saturday afternoon.
The Baggies are currently four points clear of second-placed Leeds United at the top of the Championship table, while Wigan sit 22nd as they battle against the drop.
Match preview
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West Brom's record this season speaks for itself, winning 19 of their 35 matches and suffering just four defeats to lead the division, four points clear of second-placed Leeds on the same number of games.
The Baggies are nine points clear of third-placed Fulham, meanwhile, and it is difficult to imagine them dropping out of promotion contention having showed their class throughout the campaign.
West Brom's recent form has been particularly impressive, winning five of their last six in the Championship, including successive victories over Bristol City and Preston North End in their last two.
Slaven Bilic's side are also still in the FA Cup and will face Premier League opposition in the shape of Newcastle United on March 3 in the fifth round of the competition.
There is no question that the league is most important to the the club this term, though, and it does appear that the Baggies are destined for a return to England's top flight.
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Wigan, on the other hand, are fighting for their lives at the other end of the table. Indeed, a total of 37 points from 35 matches has left the Latics in 22nd position with 11 games left.
Paul Cook's side are level on points with 21st-placed Middlesbrough, though, and just two points behind Charlton Athletic in 18th, which is an indication of how things stand towards the bottom of the division.
Wigan have been excellent in recent weeks, though, following draws with Boro and Cardiff City by beating Millwall and Reading in their last two fixtures.
The Latics ran out 3-0 winners at the Madejski Stadium on Wednesday evening, and it would be some story if they could put a third straight victory on the board against the league leaders.
West Brom are unbeaten in their last three games with Wigan, although the points were shared in a 1-1 draw in the reverse fixture back in December.
West Brom Championship form: WWWDWW
Wigan Championship form: WLDDWW
Team News
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West Brom will again be without the services of key midfielder Romaine Sawyers through suspension, meaning that there could be another start for teenager Rekeem Harper.
Matt Phillips, Kamil Grosicki and Charlie Austin all came off the bench against Preston, but it seems unlikely that any of the three will start this weekend due to the form of Callum Robinson, Hal Robson-Kanu and Matheus Pereira in the final third of the field.
Grady Diangana is closing in on a return from injury, but this match will come too soon for the on-loan West Ham United attacker.
As for Wigan, Antonee Robinson, Kieran Dowell, Dujon Sterling and, Joe Gelhardt and Daniel Fox are still on the sidelines.
The Latics did not pick up any fresh concerns against Reading, though, and it would not be a surprise to see the same XI sent onto the field due to the impressiveness of the performance.
Jamal Lowe and Kieffer Moore both scored against the Royals and should keep their spots, while Joe Williams should retain his spot in the middle of the park.
West Brom possible starting lineup:
Johnstone; O'Shea, Ajayi, Hegazi, Townsend; Krovinovic, Livermore, Harper; Robinson, Robson-Kanu, Pereira
Wigan possible starting lineup:
Marshall; Byrne, Kipre, Balogun, Pearce; Morsy, Williams; Lowe, Roberts, Massey; Moore
We say: West Brom 2-0 Wigan Athletic
Wigan's recent form deserves a lot of respect, but it is difficult to look past West Brom, who are threatening to race clear at the summit. The Baggies should have too much for their opponents on Saturday afternoon.
Matt Law
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 win with a probability of 65.06%. A draw had a probability of 20.3% and a win for had a probability of 14.65%.
The most likely scoreline for a win was 2-0 with a probability of 11.61%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-0 (11.41%) and 2-1 (9.82%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (9.65%), while for a win it was 0-1 (4.74%).
