PREMIER LEAGUE
Venue:
Goodison Park
Date:
Sunday, 5 April
Kick-off:
1500 BST
Coverage:
Full match commentary on BBC Radio Merseyside 95.8 FM, 1485 MW and DAB; score updates on Final Score, BBC Sport website and BBC Radio 5 Live; live text commentary on BBC Sport website; Highlights on Match of the Day
Everton boss David Moyes is waiting on the return of Tim Cahill and Tim Howard so he can assess their fitness.
Cahill has spent the last week recovering from a calf injury and faces a late test, but Howard is expected to return unscathed and will face Wigan.
Wigan will be without Amr Zaki after the Egyptian striker failed to return from international duty on time.
Jason Koumas has a hip problem which needs to be assessed, otherwise the Latics squad is at full strength.
Everton (from): Howard, Neville, Jagielka, Lescott, Baines, Pienaar, Osman, Cahill, Fellaini, Saha, Jo, Rodwell, Baxter, Nash, Castillo, Jacobsen, Gosling, Wallace, Van der Meyde.
Wigan (from): Kirkland, Melchiot, Bramble, Boyce, Figueroa, Watson, Brown, Scharner, Kapo, N'Zogbia, De Ridder, Rodallega, Mido, Kingson, Pollitt, Edman, Cho.
Everton manager David Moyes:
"Arsenal are seven points ahead of us so that is quite a gap.
"But they still have Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea to play.
"I want a last push. That means getting to the FA Cup final, hanging in there in the league and qualifying for Europe because that is a big thing to do."
Wigan assistant manager Eric Black
(on Amr Zaki's failure to return from international duty with Egypt):
"I don't think it will have a big effect on the dressing room.
"But it is important now that the season doesn't just drift away.
"The first challenge was to break the 40-point barrier and we now have to try to end the season on a high."
Two clubs in the hunt for Europa League places meet at Goodison Park.
Everton are chasing a fourth consecutive home win; Wigan a third successive Premier League victory.
These managers have plotted tactics against each other 12 times in their careers; Everton's David Moyes has won six of those games, Steve Bruce two, with four drawn.
Wigan secured only their second win over Everton in the reverse fixture in November, and now travel to Goodison in search of a first ever double over them.
Distance between the clubs: 19 miles (31 kilometres)
Wigan are making the shortest journey of any Premier League club this weekend.
EVERTON
Going into this round of matches: 6th 48 points
(all statistics are ahead of this weekend's round of Premier League fixtures)
1. Defeat at Portsmouth last time out was their first loss in nine in all competitions, and in six in the Premier League.
2. The eighth highest scorers in Premier League history need two more goals to total 800.
3. Not lost back-to-back in 58 Premier League matches, since eclipsed away to Newcastle and home to Liverpool on 7 and 20 October 2007 respectively.
4. Not yet beaten a top-seven club, and lost home and away to Portsmouth. Wigan could also do the double over them, as could Aston Villa.
5. Won five and drawn two of the last seven league games at Goodison Park. Only Manchester City lead them in the "home" form table, with six straight wins.
6. Hoping to add to successive home victories over Bolton, West Brom and Stoke; last completed four consecutive home league victories on Boxing Day 2007.
7. Picked up 23 points at home and 25 on the road.
8. The FA Cup semi-final with Manchester United on 19 April is sandwiched between trips to Aston Villa (after this) and Chelsea. Thereafter the Premier League run-in is:- Manchester City (h), Sunderland (a), Tottenham (h), West Ham (h) and Fulham (a).
WIGAN ATHLETIC
Going into this round of matches: 7th 41 points
(all statistics are ahead of this weekend's round of Premier League fixtures)
1. Won the last two Premier League matches against Sunderland (a) and Hull (h); their best winning run since notching four wins on the bounce between 13 December 2008 and 11 January 2009.
2. Averaging a goal a game; 30 in 30.
3. Already beaten Hull home and away, and could do the same to Bolton, Portsmouth, Blackburn and West Brom, as well as Everton.
4. The victory in the reverse fixture is one of 11 so far this season, but their only maximum against a club in the top nine.
5. Won 10 of the 12 league games in which they took the lead this season; won only one of 13 in which they initially fell behind.
6. The victory at Sunderland in their most recent game on the road was their first in six away from the JJB.
7. Failed to score in four of the last six away league games.
8. Lost the last two Premier League North-West derbies away from home (against the Manchester clubs), and won only one of 11 such fixtures; 0-1 against Bolton on 28 December 2008.
9. Arsenal (11 April) and Manchester United (13 May) are still to visit the JJB among their seven remaining fixtures after this. The full list is:- Arsenal (h), Blackburn (a), Bolton (h), WBA (a), Manchester United (h), Stoke (a) and Portsmouth (h).
EVERTON
Tim HOWARD and Phil JAGIELKA are the only remaining players to have been on the field for every minute of every one of Everton's league and cup matches this season.
Tim CAHILL is the club's leading Premier League scorer with seven goals.
If selected:-
HOWARD will be making his 200th appearance for an English club (Manchester United and Everton).
Leighton BAINES will be facing a former club. The 24 year old defender made 162 appearances (145 in the league) and scored four league goals for Wigan, from the outset of his professional career until his move to Goodison Park in August 2007.
If on the field from the outset:-
CAHILL will be making his 150th start in an Everton shirt.
WIGAN ATHLETIC
Maynor FIGUEROA is the only remaining player to have started every one of Wigan's Premier League matches this season.
Amr ZAKI is the club's top Premier League scorer with 10 goals, but he has not hit the back of the net from open play since his brace against Liverpool on 18 October.
If selected:-
Chris KIRKLAND will be making his 150th career league appearance (Coventry, Liverpool, West Brom and Wigan).
Michael BROWN will be making his 50th league appearance in Wigan colours.
MIDO will be making his 100th appearance for an English club (Tottenham, Middlesbrough and Wigan).
These clubs have met three times in the Premier League at Goodison Park, and a different result has been produced on each occasion; a Wigan win in 2005, a draw in 2006 and an Everton win in 2007.
Home and away
League (inc PL): Everton 3 wins, Wigan 2, Draws 2
Prem: Everton 3 wins, Wigan 2, Draws 2
at Everton only
League (inc PL): Everton 1 win, Wigan 1, Draws 1
Prem: Everton 1 win, Wigan 1, Draws 1
Everton 2-1 Wigan Athletic
11 August 2007 - Ref: Mark Clattenburg
Everton scorers: Osman 26, Anichebe 75
Wigan scorer: Sibierski 80
Wigan Athletic 1-0 Everton
24 November 2008 - Ref: Rob Styles
Wigan scorer: Camara 51
Phil Dowd (Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire)
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