In this article…
Blackpool v Wigan
📅
Kick Off: Monday 28th October at 20:00
🏆
Competition: League One
📺
Watch Live: Sky Sports Main Event
Following a run of four without a win, including three straight defeats, Blackpool will aim to get back to winning ways when entertaining Wigan at Bloomfield Road.
The visitors, who will make the nearly one-hour journey on Monday evening, enter this encounter following back-to-back losses, having been behind at half-time in both.
⭐ Blackpool v Wigan Best Bets
Blackpool’s performance was described as ‘embarrassing’ by assistant manager Steve Agnew after the 5-1 loss to Peterborough. He said the fans that made the long journey were let down. Players won’t like having this labelled at them, even if it was fair. Therefore, they can be expected to start this match really brightly to try and get the supporters back in their good books.
Also, only Peterborough and Wrexham have netted more first-half goals in League One action this season compared to Monday’s home side. This would set them up perfectly for the second period. Steve Bruce’s side have netted 2+ goals on eight occasions in all competitions this season. Regarding Wigan, they’ve shipped two or more in back-to-back matches.
18+, Please Gamble Responsibly, #Ad.
👕 Blackpool v Wigan Predicted XI
🔍 Blackpool v Wigan Players to Watch
🟠 Rob Apter
Apter is desperate to make an impression at this level having done so on loan in the league below with Tranmere in 2023/24. There, he netted 12 league goals and made a real name for himself. He only has one goal for The Tangerines in the current campaign and he is clearly keen on improving that.
The 21-year-old has only failed to have at least one shot on goal in three fixtures this season, and he was a late sub off the bench in two of those.
The tricky winger has started 12 times in all competitions and in eight of those, which is 61.54% of the time, he had two or more shots in the match. Focusing on his last three appearances, this player is averaging 2.33 goal attempts, so it would go against the grain if he suddenly tightened up and changed his approach.
📂 Blackpool v Wigan Cheat Sheet
Andy’s Bet Club is the best place for football betting predictions. We offer a huge range of EFL betting tips and EFL accumulator tips every week covering ALL of England’s best footballing action.
We also offer both teams to score tips, plus bet builder-focused picks like our card betting tips, player shots on target tips, and fouls betting predictions, alongside Premier League anytime goalscorer predictions.
💻 Blackpool v Wigan Form and Tactics
Blackpool enter this on the back of a 5-1 away defeat at Peterborough last Tuesday. This was the first time since May 2022 when conceding at least five in a league match, which was also ironically against Peterborough. This extended their losing run to three in succession, which last happened to The Tangerines in April 2023.
Despite the 5-1 setback in their last game, Blackpool actually won the xG battle on the night 1.77-1.20. They also won on xG in the 2-1 home defeat to Barnsley the game before (1.20-0.62). Manager Steve Bruce will be more concerned about their defensive output. They are heavily underperforming in regards to their xGA in league action this season. Monday’s home side have an xGA of 14.28, despite conceding 23 goals.
Last season, Blackpool’s home record was ranked 4th overall. However, this season it is currently positioned 14th out of the 24 teams. This is perhaps one reason why they’ve attracted the attention of the match referee frequently in home league battles. Only three clubs have received more home yellow cards in League One than Blackpool. The team are also averaging 11.8 fouls in those encounters as well.
Prior to this two-game losing streak, they find themselves in, Wigan was actually unbeaten in seven in all competitions. Incredibly, they failed to concede a single goal within those seven, though four of those did finish 0-0.
Wigan have scored ten league goals this season, however, they all came across only five of their 12 encounters. No team has failed to score in a higher percentage of their games in the league so far. Athletic are however underachieving on their league xG by approximately four goals. Shaun Maloney’s side suffered defeat to Mansfield in their previous match 2-0, although they did achieve a higher xG compared to their victorious opponents (1.52-0.27).
Maloney’s side have scored two of their league goals this season on corner kick situations. They therefore need to make the most of such opportunities on Monday given they only average 3.1 corners awarded. On the other hand, this team are conceding an average of 4.06 corners.
Get best bets sent to your inbox, it’s free.
🏁 Blackpool v Wigan Ref Watch
- Referee: Farai Hallam
- Hallam has refereed 12 matches this season (League One, League Two, National League and EFL Trophy) and it would appear he is a lenient official given he is averaging 2.25 cards issued per match.
- He issued only one penalty kick this season and is yet to award a red card in any senior football encounter in 2024/25. Even last season, only once did he pull the red out of his pocket, which was an August 23 National League clash between Eastleigh and Aldershot.
- Monday’s match will only be the second time Hallam has oversaw a League One encounter. His only experience of this level was Peterborough’s 3-2 victory over Bristol Rovers last month. In that clash, three yellow cards were dished out, plus Hallam awarded a total of 24 fouls.
Football Predictions at Andy’s Bet Club
Our guide on how to use a Cheat Sheet is the perfect way to get involved with our bet builder stats tool, the best freely available data source for punting on the Premier League.
We recommend the best betting sites for accumulators, top bet builder sites, and the best Premier League free bets, and weekly free bet clubs, all to ensure you bet smarter when backing our tips with the best UK sports betting sites.
Expert guides, such as this one, on xG in football, are also available to help you up your punting game.
* I recommend waiting for confirmed team line-ups before placing any bets.
* All odds displayed correct at the time of publishing.
Written by an Andy verified content writer
18+ please gamble responsibly.
