The final game of the year is at home to Wigan Athletic. The tradition is a strong run of games in the new year from United, and after the win at Hull last Sunday, lets hope we can continue winning ways in this fixture against a side who either play very well and cause lots of problems for the opposition or simply don’t play at all. It can be hit and miss with Wigan, but the United side with the quality it has will surely be capable of turning over Wigan Athletic.

Last Time Out

Hull gave us one heck of a game, and were denied a good penalty claim, saw two fantastic chances slip by and in the end the scoreline looks comfortable on paper, but there’s more to it then a 3-1 victory for us. Rooney scoring late in the first half settled lots of nerves, but an insane backpass by Rooney led to a penalty giving Hull the equaliser. Rooneys will to make amends for his error showed through and in the end, we deservedly, I think, left the KC Stadium with all three points, but we were made fight bloody hard for them as Hull showed how competitive they can be. Very entertaining game and I’m sure Ferguson and the players will have learnt a lot from the performance. The win also pushed us ahead of Arsenal who had beaten Aston Villa earlier that day.

Our Line Up

—–Kuszczak——————–

Rafael—–Brown——–Vidic—–Evra
Valencia—–Carrick——–Fletcher—–Park
—Rooney——–Owen

The back five were brilliant against Hull I thought. Now with some of the injuries coming back, the defence is shoring itself up. Rafael and Wes Brown were very good and must hold their places for the Wigan encounter.

In midfield, Valencia had a quiet game last time out, but he’ll love to play against his old team and show them what they let go. He’s a sure starter for me. As for the rest, I’d imagine Giggs will step out of this one, and since Park came on for the Welshman against Hull, I wouldn’t be surprised if the Korean started this fixture. Carrick and Fletcher maybe the two in the middle, but you have to remember Anderson and Scholes are two names that want to get a game. Perhaps one of them will play instead of Carrick?

Upfront, Rooney starts. Need I explain my reasoning behind that? However he may be substituted early on if we get a lead going to save him for the mouth-watering FA Cup clash with Leeds United on the 3rd of January. As for Michale Owen starting against Wigan, I want him to start because I want to see he grow with Rooney. Berbatov was pretty dull against Hull despite scoring a tap-in. The general feeling I’m getting from manutdtalk.com and listening to some radio phone-ins, is that there is some unrest about the Bulgarian and his lazy attitude and tendency to slow the game down. We shall see, but I hope its Owen for the Wigan game.——-

Key Devil

Wayne Rooney could be the key man in this game. On form from the Hull game, he’ll want to add to his tally against Wigan who he slotted two past earlier in the season. If Wigan don’t handle him, its game over as far as I’m concerned.

The Opposition

As mentioned above, they can be a little hit and miss. You dont always know what Wigan will turn up on the day. They’ve beaten Chelsea earlier in the season, but have failed to register a win since the end of November when they beat Sunderland 1-0. They’ve scored at least one goal in their last seven outings and in scoring just one goal in a match they’ve made six points over the season so far. (1 win – 3 draws – 5 defeats)

Last Seasons Corresponding Fixture

A very tidy 5-0 victory for United when we went to the JJB last August which saw Michael Owen score his first league goal for us. Berbatov, Nani and Rooney (2) also added to the celebrations. Solid performance it was, with not much to report. Nemanja Vidic got himself tangled with Hugo Rodallega once or twice so there’s a battle to watch out for on Wednesday night.

Keano’s History Lesson

Wigan have never beaten United in any competition. Nine meetings in the Premier League and one in the League Cup. Can Wigan buck that trend come Wednesday? They’ve also never scored more then one goal in a game against Ferguson’s red army.

Keano’s Verdict

Nice enough fixture to end the year. Cant see us dropping points here, and with things so tight at the top, the players will have winning the game drilled into their heads.

Manchester United 3-0 Wigan

Written by Keano