Ex-Eagle Ben Watson helped inject some confidence, but it was too late

It’s somewhat surprising that, in the long and illustrious history of the English Football League, Wigan have only crossed paths with Crystal Palace twice previously. Maybe it’s our ex-Palace contingent of Ben Watson, Emmerson Boyce and Victor Moses that makes it seem as though we’ve had more dealings with the Eagles, at least on the pitch, than we actually have. If one were being tongue-in-cheek, one might even say Latics are something of a Palace B-team, and that Dougie Freedman’s men would complete a comprehensive victory over a subservient visiting Wigan side.

It is true that Roberto Martinez has a mixed record against non-Premier League opposition, with some memorable wins and equally miserable losses –most notably that desolate 2-0 defeat to Notts County at the DW– thrown into the mix for good measure. On the whole, however, he’s been relatively successful, even with reserves and bench-warmers handed an opportunity wherever possible. Win or lose, the argument for fringe-teamers being given a run-out is compelling – after all, you can’t afford to field a weakened squad in any Premier League game these days, in more ways than one. Make too many changes and you risk the wrath of the Football Association, and unless you’re Alex Ferguson, a hefty fine to go with it.

Roberto promised his usual changes, and certainly delivered on this front, with seven alterations from the side that started against Manchester City at the weekend. Patrick van Aanholt, David Jones and Shaun Maloney were handed their debuts, while Albert Crusat made his first start for Latics. Conor Sammon and Hendry Thomas were drafted into the midfield and attack respectively, with McManaman and Dicko taking their place on the bench.

Captain for the day Maynor Figueroa was switched to a more central position while van Aanholt occupied the left wing. None of the aforementioned ex-Eagles retained their place in the Latics starting line up, with Boyce out injured and Moses and Watson jostling for position on the subs bench.

Read the rest of this entry »

The League Trophy adorned with Latics ribbons. Well, not really. (Credit: Angelo Romano)

Tomorrow afternoon, Latics will find out who they shall face in the Carling Cup Third Round, should they manage to beat Crystal Palace on 13 September. But who gives a monkey’s? Certainly not QPR’s Neil Warnock, who this week rubbished the English League Cup after his side were sent crashing out of the competition by League One side Rochdale.

I can fully understand why Warnock would make such comments. The pivotal Bradley Orr, who limped off with a groin injury on the half hour mark, will certainly not play against us this weekend, and may be out for a while longer. Latics faced a (quite) similar situation last year, when a Carling Cup match saw Victor Moses sustain a 38th minute injury from which he never fully recovered until the latter stages of the season. Admittedly, that was in the Quarter Final, and Wigan were actually in with a half decent shout of winning the thing outright if they had won the tie, but it’s a similar principle. The Premier League’s the thing, and for those battling to stay in it, it is easy to assume the view that everything else is an unwanted distraction.

Of course, there are plenty out there that treat the Carling Cup with a modicum of respect. Rochdale, for one, will be pretty pleased at this moment in time, as will Brighton, MK Dons, Shrewsbury Town and Aldershot, who all felled giants to reach the Third Round. Roberto Martinez is another fan, no doubt grateful of the chance to blood some bench-warmers and fringe team players. Of course, he wasn’t afforded that chance this week, and Latics’ wider squad will be all the worse for it.

But then, I suppose many Premier League bosses are secretly pleased to be dumped out of the Carling Cup. Those at the very top have Champions League ties to consider, and fixture congestion can be a real problem – just ask Alex Ferguson. Even the mid-table sides have bigger fish to fry –Stoke and Fulham are currently embroiled in arduous Europa Cup campaigns–, and can view the League Cup as a mere midweek kickabout in comparison.

Read the rest of this entry »

Victor Moses: Out of luck

Ever wondered exactly why the Carling Cup exists? Neither have I, really, but it’s interesting to learn England’s League Cup was created as a midweek competition for teams with floodlit grounds. It may seem a gimmicky premise, but these days there’s a Europa League spot up for grabs so you can’t really label it a Mickey Mouse Cup, as it was known for so many years.

A quick look at Latics’ previous games in this competition revealed a distinct pattern: three home games against teams in lower leagues, three wins. Only the Hartlepool tie could be termed comfortable, however, so luck of the draw was certainly on our side. This changed in a moment when we got Arsenal in the Quarters, but hey, at least we were pretty much guaranteed to be put out by a Premier League team now, sparing us the shame of a giant killing. If such a thing could ever exist in the Carling, for which only the top four divisions are eligible.

So how would Martinez treat this trip to London? With an important Premier League game against Stoke imminent, would he succumb to temptation and rest his star men, or play his full strength team and give it a right good go? Past experience would have suggested the former, and I wasn’t at all surprised Bob decided on exactly that. A loss on Saturday, as I alluded to the other day, would stick us right in the swamp again.

Antolin Alcaraz, returning from a one-game ban, was paired with Steve Caldwell at the back, whilst Watson, McArthur and Thomas were all handed starts. Mauro Boselli, who scored in his last Carling Cup outing against Swansea, was preferred to Franco Di Santo up front, which would seem to suggest the Ten Million Dollar Man is below his fellow countryman in the pecking order, at least for the moment. Victor Moses was also given a chance after a long string of substitute appearances, and not before time I’d say. Al Habsi, Gohouri, Figueroa and Stam completed a vastly rejigged Latics line-up.

Read the rest of this entry »

The away support made a good impression

A disappointed, but not disheartened Swansea City made the journey back across the border last night having been dumped out of the cup by none other than the King of Traitors himself, one Roberto ‘Iscariot’ Martinez.

Now, as an outsider, I can’t claim to know the circumstances in which Bob departed 18 months ago, but one thing’s for sure: you must be joking if you think they’ve forgotten about it in certain quarters of Glamorgan. When the Swans drew Wigan away in the Fourth Round of the Carling, there was always going to be a big following from South Wales, if only just to give their ex-boss a right earful.

And that’s precisely what Martinez received. Not that he even so much as flinched at the barrage of abuse flying his way for the duration of the match (well, most of it anyway). Instead, he concentrated on maintaining his stony face and variety of gesticulations which no doubt make sense to some people. At least, the Wigan players understood to an extent because they seemed to reap some reward. Or perhaps not, and Antolin Alcaraz and Mo Diame decided to make up their own strategies off the hoof?

I doubt it though, because even though the Latics management team made copious amounts of changes for this midweek cup tie, they set out to stick loosely to the 4-5-1 that could so easily have beaten Bolton at the weekend. Some might even venture so far as to say it worked, but for the odd hiccup, which is perhaps to be expected from a back four that haven’t played together competitively for a while. It isn’t as if Latics’ defence is the strongest in the Prem at the best of times anyway, but I think we shall move swiftly on from that point.

Read the rest of this entry »