IT'S no surprise to Steve Bruce that the rest of the Premier League are beginning to realise that little Wigan pack a big punch.

A four-match unbeaten league run has catapulted Latics into the top ten and finally made quite a few sceptics sit up and take notice.

With Amr Zaki top of the scoring charts and his mean defence conceding only two goals in the last four league games, Bruce is looking for back-to-back home wins when they face Middlesbrough tomorrow.

But the Latics boss accepts that continued success could have a sting in the tail when the transfer window opens in January.

"People who have watched us know that we have some really good players here," Bruce said. "We've improved dramatically on last year and we have to keep on improving.

"The hardest thing for us is to keep the big boys at bay so we can keep these players together."

Wigan could head into the international break with 11 points on the board before they face tricky fixtures against Liverpool and Aston Villa.

And Bruce is set to name an unchanged squad provided England Under-21 midfielder Lee Cattermole gets through training without any reaction to his hamstring problem.

Cattermole, 20, who cost Wigan £3.5m in the summer, says he's looking forward to the prospect of facing his old club.

"I'm a Boro fan and so are all my family so it's going to be a bit special. But I've just got to look on it as a normal game and try to get another three points for Wigan," he said.

Bruce said: "I think the time was right for Lee to leave. I'm delighted we got him."

The match will also feature a battle between Egypt team mates Zaki and Boro's Mido, who Bruce tried to sign from Tottenham when he was manager of Birmingham.

Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate could be without three key players for the Barclays Premier League trip to Wigan.

Full-back Andrew Taylor is a doubt with a hip flexor problem, while central defender Robert Huth has an ankle injury, so Jonathan Grounds has been recalled from his loan spell at Norwich.

In addition, Gary O’Neil is ill and will be assessed after training.

Skipper Emanuel Pogatetz serves the second game of a three-match suspension, while Tuncay Sanli (knee) is a long-term absentee and Julio Arca (ankle) has returned to Argentina to see a specialist.

Wigan Athletic (from): Kirkland, Melchiot, Boyce, Bramble, Figueroa, Valencia, Cattermole, Palacios, Kapo, Heskey, Zaki, Brown, Camara, De Ridder, Kilbane, Koumas, Kupisz, Scharner, Taylor, Pollitt, Kingson.

Middlesbrough (from): Turnbull, Jones, Hoyte, Wheater, Huth, Riggott, Taylor, Grounds, Digard, O’Neil, Aliadiere, Downing, Johnson, Shawky, Alves, Mido, Walker, Emnes, Craddock.

Wigan league form: LWDDW

Boro league form: LWLLL

Key opponent: Stewart Downing - winger can do damage with his cultured left foot

Prediction: Wigan 1 Boro 0 - Latics are strong at the moment and this is likely to be a battle

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You can get 6/1 on Wigan winning 1-0 with Betfred. For this and more odds, click here.