Steve Bruce has a string of injury concerns going into the season, some of which affect key fantasy targets.

Kirkland, Scharner, Koumas and Taylor are all suffering from complaints that threaten their availability for the trip to West Ham for the opening game of the season.

As reported only yesterday, keeper Chris Kirkland is once again being troubled by a back injury that flared up whilst the squad were in Austria. Paul Scharner meanwhile has reportedly sprained his ligaments in the friendly against Barnsley last week.

Koumas and Taylor are both carrying knee injuries. Koumas has yet to take the field in the Wigan pre-season, while Taylor has appeared for just 45-minutes.

“Unfortunately we’ve got one or two injuries, it’s been disappointing not to have seen much of Taylor or Koumas yet”, remarked Bruce.

“Hopefully we can get everyone fit soon and have plenty of selection options for the West Ham game.”

We’ll need to keep an eye on the progress of Kirkland and Scharner as they are significant fantasy players for the coming season. Taylor has potential but given the arrival of De Ridder and Kapo, he may well have his opportunities cut even when fit for selection.

Wigan take on Kilmarnock in their final friendly on Saturday.