Wigan Athletic vs Brentford
Saturday 21 January DW Stadium Sky Bet Championship Kick-off: 3pm
The Opponents
Life back in the Sky Bet Championship has been tough for The Latics after last season's promotion with Warren Joyce's side currently 23rd in the table, three points from safety, with more than half the season gone. Poor form cost Gary Caldwell his job in November but, until last weekend's win over Burton Albion, his successor Joyce had only tasted victory once in his first ten league games in charge, seven of those ending in defeat. The new year has brought a change in fortune as The Latics beat Nottingham Forest 2-0 in the Emirates FA Cup Third Round to set up a local derby with Manchester United before last weekend's much needed 2-0 win over The Brewers moved them back within touching distance of safety.
After 31 ins and outs in the summer, Joyce has overseen a much quieter January so far. Craig Davies has swapped Wigan for Scunthorpe United while Jakob Haugaard [Stoke City] and Callum Connolly [Everton] have both arrived on loan as the only comings and goings so far.
The Manager
Joyce made more than 700 appearances for five clubs in a 19 year professional career. He began at Bolton Wanderers, for whom he made more than 200 appearances, before a five year spell with Preston North End. Shorter stays at Plymouth Argyle and Burnley preceded a move to Hull City. In November 1998, Joyce was named Player-Manager at Boothferry Park and helped The Tigers avoid relegation despite the side being bottom of the table, and facing bankruptcy, when he took over.
That run wasn't enough to keep him his job as Brian Little took over. Following that Joyce coached at Leeds United, Stockport County, and Tranmere Rovers before moving to Royal Antwerp in Belgium in 2006. After two years there he moved back to the North West to co-manage the Manchester United reserves, a position he held on his own from 2010 until his appointment at the DW Stadium.
The Match Officials
Referee: James Adcock Assistant Referees: Billy Smallwood and James Mainwaring Fourth Official: Thomas Bramall
Pre-match views
Dean Smith: "We are playing well at the moment."
Andreas Bjelland: “There is a good spirit in the group and we are looking forward to the next game.”
Ticket news
Tickets and collections for tomorrow's match will be available at the DW Stadium before kick-off, cash only from the P block turnstiles. There will be a £2 price increase for adult tickets and £5 increase for senior tickets. Any collections/duplicates will be from window 9 at the main ticket office at the DW Stadium.
Travel News
Directions on how to get to the DW Stadium and matchday parking arrangements can be found here.
Match Betting
Principal partners 888sport offer the latest odds on tomorrow's meeting. Bees 37/20 Wigan 8/5 Draw 2/1 Join Club Sponsors 888sport today and get industry leading odds on a range of sports markets!
Match Coverage
You can hear live match commentary on Bees Player from 2.30pm tomorrow, with Mark Burridge and Ben Burgess.
There will be live match updates on Twitter from 2pm.
Download the new Brentford FC app on android and iPhone and get all the coverage from Griffin Park in one place. Download for free here.