Er, well, not particularly.
“Wolves will be tougher“, claimed Bob after the Villa game. Well, at least he was right about that.
If everything went Wigan’s way on Saturday, then it’s safe to say that this certainly was not Latics’ evening. Frustration was the order of the day as none of Martinez’s tactics seemed to work, and a strong early showing by Wolves, in which Andy Keogh managed to steal a goal, was ably defended for the remainder of the game.
A good physical performance by the visitors meant Wigan never completely dominated, and though the hosts bossed second half possession, few chances came their way. In particular, a superb 90 minutes by on-loan defender Michael Mancienne ensured Latics opportunities were hard to come by, helped in part by an average passing game by Titus Bramble, who seemed to think he was playing for Wigan Warriors with numerous successful 40-20 efforts. Not much good in this game, though.
Things only began to click for Wigan in the final few minutes of the contest, when the passes once again began to flow and chances came. There were two: one for Sinclair and a slightly easier one for Scharner; the first sailed past the Wolves post, whilst the Austrian was a victim of his own bootlaces, tripping at a crucial moment.
Some promising runs from N’Zogbia and Sinclair were to be found, but weren’t enough to stop the Latics supporters streaming from the terraces early in order to beat the bridge jam (which, by the way, is near impossible to dodge – believe me, I’ve tried).
All in all, a disappointing day for Wigan, who now head into Saturday’s clash against Manchester United with much to consider. There are some positives, such as a solid midfield effort by Jordi Gomez, but they will no doubt need to be built on for the forthcoming difficult run of fixtures that will be crucial in dictating Latics’ fate this season.
Come on Latics.
