Kirkland offers no favours

Chris Kirkland insists there will be no room for sentiment when he heads back to West Brom this weekend. The Wigan keeper returns to the Hawthorns on Saturday three years after an ill-fated loan spell in the Midlands.While on the books of Liverpool, Kirkland spent the 2005/06 season with Baggies but saw injury restrict him to only a handful of appearances.He admits the club still holds a special place in his heart, but claims he will be offering no favours upon his return.Wigan are still chasing a top-half finish in the Premier League this term, meaning they will be going all out to push rock-bottom West Brom closer to the drop when they lock horns."I had a spell at Albion a few years ago, played 12 games then got injured, which was me finished there," said Kirland."It will be nice to go back there as I still speak to a lot of the players and it will be good to see them all again.Hangover"But the most important thing is to go to The Hawthorns and get something for Wigan."We only have three weeks of the season left and we want to finish it well, not have a hangover for next season."It will be a tough game at Albion - they play some very good football but we are capable of doing that too."Kirkland will expect to feature in Steve Bruce's plans at the Hawthorns, but defensive duo Mario Melchiot and Paul Scharner face a race against time to prove their fitness ahead of the game."Melchiot has a groin injury and Scharner's problem is his knee," Latics manager Steve Bruce told the Wigan Evening Post."We'll see how they are as the week goes on, then make a decision."

Source: SKY_Sports