Wrexham vs Wigan betting tips: Favourites Wrexham could falter under high expectations
- George Dempsey
- 7 August 2023
Wrexham will play host to Wigan Athletic in their first Carabao Cup fixture at the Racecourse Ground since 2007.
Wrexham face Wigan in the Carabao Cup live on Sky Sports on Tuesday evening and we think the visitors will edge a cup cracker.
Date, KO time and TV coverage
Carabao Cup, Tuesday August 8, Kick-off 8pm, live on Sky Sports Football
Carabao Cup betting tips
Bet: Wigan to win
Wrexham vs Wigan betting preview
The Hollywood scriptwriters threw the trajectory of Wrexham's meteoric rise into question last weekend as MK Dons beat the Welsh side 5-3 on their EFL return.
Phil Parkinson's men can be pleased they found the net three times in the curtain raiser, but the question marks we'd raised over their ability to adapt defensively to the level were proven.
Meanwhile, at Pride Park Stadium, Wigan showed plenty of resilience as they took the lead twice to beat Derby County 2-1 despite being under immense pressure.
A Charlie Wyke brace coupled with a brave rearguard action allowed Shaun Maloney's men to leave with all three points as they limited the hosts to half chances.
The visitors are fifth favourite to be relegated and Maloney has a job on his hands this season, but a win away to a promotion favourite is a solid start.
The Carabao Cup is often a time for rotation but the Latics are short on senior bodies and building some momentum early on could be key, so we expect a strong team.
Charlie Hughes, Stephen Humphrys, Sean Clare, Tom Pearce and two-goal hero Charlie Wyke all stood out in the weekend win and could feature.
The hosts may opt to bring in Ollie Palmer and Jordan Davies, both of whom featured from the bench on Saturday but played their roles in Wrexham's promotion.
Aaron Hayden and Anthony Forde were also crucial and could start while Mark Howard could be given the gloves ahead of Ben Foster in the cup competition this season.
The bizarre thing about the Red Dragons' weekend mauling was that their expected goals against was 0.76. The own goal didn't help, but three of the Dons' goals came from a combined xG of 0.21.
The visitor's midfielders were given the freedom of the park time and time again before four to five players would collapse on the eventual scorer only to be beaten with a soft effort.
The comical defending and lack of pressure made it possible to score five goals from low-quality chances and if Callum Lang and Callum McManaman are afforded similar space, it will spell trouble.
The Welsh side could prove to be an entertaining watch throughout their League Two campaign, specifically early on while they're still adjusting to the level.
Wrexham went on a journey in last season's FA Cup but they've been priced as favourites here and expectations are high, which is a tougher dynamic to manage than being underdogs.
Wigan will be flying high after their weekend win and with all the focus on the Hollywood home side, we think Maloney's men will secure a professional progression to the second round.
