prem preview: everton-wigan athletic
 
what: premier league
who: everton (6th epl, 2006-07) v wigan athletic (17th epl, 2006-07)
where: goodison park, liverpool, merseyside
when: saturday 11th august 2007, 15:00 (bst)
referee: mark clattenburg

saturday’s opening day encounter sees david moyes’ everton entertain chris hutchings’ wigan athletic.  with last season’s relegation battle firmly behind them, wigan will hope to continue their unbeaten recent record at goodison park.  everton have been unable to defeat wigan on home turf in their only two premiership contests.  last seasons corresponding fixture saw the two teams share the points in a 2-2 draw.  striker andrew johnson tapped in from close range before paul scharner scored twice either side of a james beattie penalty.  

big names on their way?

everton approach saturday’s game in a flurry of media transfer speculation. 

with a £10 million bid for middlesbrough’s yakabu and an £8 million bid for benfica’s manuel fernandes been reported, moyes seems to have saved the bulk of his transfer budget until now.  a slow summer in terms of transfer activity – especially compared to rivals newcastle united, bolton and spurs – has seen talk on merseyside revolve predominantly around the projected new stadium in kirkby.  phil jagielka and leighton baines have both re-signed for the club that could have saved themselves £10 million had they not released both players from their academy.  steven pienaar has been offered the chance to revive his promising career after stuttering last season at german side borussia dortmund.

last season’s player of the year mikel arteta expects the toffees to have another good season and believes it’s vital to get off to a good start:

“it is very important that we start the season well and it is good that we are at goodison for the first game.  when you win the first game it takes the pressure off and gets the confidence high.” 

the beginning of a new era

after the nail biting end to last season, which saw wigan survive only for manager paul jewell to resign, the latics will hope that their new management will initiate the dawning of a new era at the jjb stadium.  new man at the helm hutchings has wasted no time in stamping his authority on the team by signing no less than seven new players during the summer.  he will be delighted with his sides’ progress so far, having won all six of their pre-season friendlies.  with the likes of mario melchiot, titus bramle and michael brown adding experience to the squad combined with the flair and creativity of jason koumas, hutchings wants his side to produce a better brand of football compared to last season:

“the new season always brings a buzz and there are some good footballers in my squad. we are trying to pass the ball more and thats no disrespect to what weve done in the past.  when you have a jason koumas in your side, you want the ball on the floor.”

form guide

everton

13 may v chelsea (a) drew 1-1

05 may v portsmouth (h) won 3-0

28 april v man utd (h) lost 2-4

21 april v west ham (a) lost 0-1  

15 april v charlton (h) won 2-1

09 april v bolton (a) drew 1-1

wigan

13 may v sheff utd (a) won 2-1

05 may v middlesbrough (h) lost  0-1

28 april v west ham (h) lost 0-3

21 april v liverpool (a) lost 0-2

15 april v tottenham (h) drew 3-3

09 april v aston villa (a) drew 1-1

team news

injury lists

everton – tim cahill (foot), leighton baines (hamstring), james vaughan (shoulder).

wigan – ryan taylor (shin), michael brown (suspended). midfielder and ex-evertonian kevin kilbane is likely to play at left-back following the departure of leighton baines to the toffees.  

squad lists

everton: tba

wigan (from): kirkland, melchiot, boyce, bramble, hall, kilbane, valencia, koumas, skoko, landzaat, cotterill, sibierski, camara, heskey, aghahowa, nash, pollitt, folan, granqvist.

watch out for

everton – andrew johnson – after a successful first season at goodison park the pressure will now be on johnson to improve on his 12 premiership goals, and be the first striker since tony cottee to reach the 20 goal mark in an everton shirt.  with euro 2008 around the corner, a free scoring season is imperative for johnson’s chances of a place in the squad.

wigan athletic – jason koumas – last season’s championship player of the year will be the key player for wigan this season provided he adapts to the rigours of premiership football.  skillful and intelligent koumas will want to prove that everton should not have baulked at his £5 million price tag during the summer. 

prediction 

whilst everton have struggled for goals during pre-season they possess genuine match winners in players like arteta and johnson.  if pienaar can adapt to the pace and physical nature of the premiership and begin to exert his influence everton should have no problems creating chances.  wigan’s bramble will hope to put the disappointment of his newcastle career behind him and his ability to marshal their backline will be crucial if the latics are to depart goodison park with any points.  with both teams wanting to get off to a good start it is sure to be hard fought – everton 2-1 wigan.

harry glynn