It’s been quite the rollercoaster ride for Wigan over the last several seasons. Since being relegated from the Premier League back in 2012-13, the club has spent the last five seasons going back and forth between the Championship to League One.
Wigan cycled through three managers alone last season as they were relegated to League One following a disastrous 23rd-place finish in the Championship.
This season, Latics have shown that they’re too good for League One. New manager Paul Cook has taken the reins and led his side all the way to the top of the table. Wigan have won six league matches in a row, with this past week’s win over Rochdale lifting the side into the top spot on 86 points.
Per Sky Bet, Wigan are listed at 2/7 to finish the season top of the table. Despite currently being level on points, Blackburn are a rather distant second to win the league at 7/2. Shrewsbury are well back at this point at 66/1 with just a few matches left to play. Well-known UK sportsbooks also have the Latics tipped at 1/86 to secure promotion for next season.
The latest surge in results has put the club in the driver’s seat for the League One title. Wigan and Blackburn are both on 86 points, though Wigan have a game in hand after having played just 40 thus far. Shrewsbury town is third on 82 points. With only the top two teams in the league gaining automatic promotion next season, Wigan’s odds are looking better and better with each passing result.
Suffice it to say, Wigan will be back in the second tier of English football next season, and any other outcome would be a true shock at this point.
This may also wind up being the second straight season in which Cook has lifted a league title trophy. Cook, who was appointed manager of Portsmouth in May of 2015, guided Pompey to the League Two title last season before getting the Wigan job this past May. He also led Chesterfield to the League Two title back in 2014.
Wigan’s list of fixtures to close out the campaign is also somewhat favorable. The Latics will finish the season with matches against, Oxford (18th), Fleetwood Town (11th), Bristol Rovers (10th), AFC Wimbledon (19th) and Doncaster Rovers (16th).
As for their chief competitors, Blackburn, the Rovers will go head-to-head against Peterborough (8th), Doncaster Rovers (16th), Charlton Athletic (6th) and Oxford (18th). All things considered, Wigan clearly have an easier path to the title than Blackburn.
If Wigan are able to close the deal, it would mark the third time in the club’s history that they will have won the championship in the third tier of English football.
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