Portsmouth V Wigan

Wigan can expect a backlash from Portsmouth after a cruel 1-0 win for Liverpool saw the visitors denied. Sound familiar? Anyways, Harry Redknapp has left Pompey now and joined Spurs, leaving Tony Adams to take the reigns. Nobody would expect to win or at least draw at Anfield bar perhaps a couple but he gave it a good shot, only to be denied by a clumbsy penalty incident which saw Steven Gerrard score.

Portsmouth are too strong at home for us to do anything against them and our poor run of form is just so heartbreaking - what has happened to players like Zaki, Valencia et al? They've all gone to sleep. They're very much underperforming when much better is expected from them all. Recent away and home defeats are a major cause for concern and I'm not sure if I can put my faith in Bruce to change it around but if he does, fair play to him. Don't get me wrong, he's a nice chap but apart from that, he needs to do his job which in my opinion, he is not doing.

Latics have, so far, no new injury worries so they go into Portsmouth's game with a strong squad and Steve Bruce's desired backlash against Fulham was non-evident and was an extremely poor game of football by our standards.

Sadly, Portsmouth will be a very stern test and if we can't overcome (no disrespect) teams such as Fulham and the teams in the basement of the Premier League, I'm afraid we don't stand much of a chance to survive this year.

The big question is: Will Steve Bruce still have a job come the end of the next couple of games? Smart money says not. Its a shame since he's an admirable chap but he's not, in my opinion, an EPL quality manager. He does have his bright moments but he's an inconsistent manager, much like our team at the moment, unfortunately.

Rob's Prediction: Portsmouth 2 Wigan 1

I think that Wigan can get a goal here but Portsmouth are too strong at home so for me, its a home win and more misery for the long suffering manager and fans alike.

Rob's Final Thought

Will Steve keep his job? Its an interesting one. Some say yes, others say no. Whelan is a ruthless businessman so I can't expect he will be at Wigan much longer if results don't improve. Come the end of the Stoke game, if things haven't got much better, I'm afraid Steve could find himself out of a job sooner rather than later. I wish Steve all the best in trying to sort this farce out, though.

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