James McCarthy says Wigan Athletic fancy stopping Sunderland's run tonight.

Martin O'Neill's outfit stunned the Premier League on Sunday by beating leaders Manchester City.

But Wigan showed their spirit by forcing a 2-2 draw at Stoke despite being down to 10 men. Midfielder McCarthy said: "To come back the way we did shows how much we've come along in a year.

"Sunderland have picked up since Martin O'Neill took charge. But we went there a few weeks ago and won. We want to start 2012 in the best possible way."