Premier League preview: Wigan v Tottenham

Tottenham will look to continue their English Premier League revival when they travel to Wigan on Saturday.

Spurs started the season poorly, thrashed 3-0 by Manchester United and 5-1 by Manchester City as the London side fell to the bottom of the table.

But since the arrival of striker Emmanuel Adebayor, Harry Redknapp’s side are unbeaten in the league, with a 2-0 win at Wolves and a 4-0 demolition of Liverpool under their belts.

Togo international Adebayor scored in both matches, including a brace against Liverpool, and is expected to start up front alongside Jermain Defoe at the DW Stadium on Saturday.

A second-string Spurs outfit was beaten on penalties in the Carling Cup third-round tie after a 0-0 draw at Stoke, but only Younes Kaboul, Benoit Assou-Ekotto and Rafael van der Vaart are likely to back up for the trip to Wigan.

Assou-Ekotto and Welsh winger Gareth Bale were crucial in Spurs’ win over Liverpool last week, with the left-sided duo giving Reds fullback Martin Skrtel a torrid time before the Slovakian was sent off in the second half.

Tottenham still have a number of first-choice player sidelined with injury, including the likes of Tom Huddlestone (ankle), Michael Dawson (Achilles), Aaron Lennon (groin) and Steven Pienaar (groin).

Veteran defender William Gallas is nearing a return to the senior team however, after playing a full 90 minutes in the reserves on Tuesday.

Wigan will be relishing the chance to return to the familiar surrounds of the DW Stadium after three consecutive defeats on the road.

The Latics have not played at the DW since their 2-0 victory over QPR on August 27, and goalkeeper Ali Al Habsi said playing in front of their home crowd would provide a huge boost.

“It’s going to be nice to come back to our fans,” said Al Habsi. “This game is going to be at home so we have to get something from it and with our crowd behind us anything is possible.”

“We have a lot of confidence playing at home this season and after the feelings we had when we defeated QPR we can’t wait to go through the same emotions at our home.”

Argentine Franco di Santo has scored all but one of Wigan’s four Premier League goals this season and will no doubt be one player Spurs will focus on shutting down.

Honduran striker Hugo Rodallega is still several months away from a return for Roberto Martinez’s side, with a knee injury expected to keep him out until December.