Al Habsi can be credited with limiting the visitors to just the one goal

I know I say this pretty much every time Latics play on a day other than Saturday, but it just feels weird. All the weekend’s footballing drama is normally washed away by our return to the daily grind at 8AM on Monday morning, and the whole day is ordinarily something of a sedate affair. The last thing I expect to see is more frantic Premier League action when I return from work, but once or twice a year we get these anomalies, these freaks of nature. Last night could have been unusual in more ways than one – there was a possibility that champions elect Manchester City could drop points at bottom-of-the-table Wigan, and the little guys certainly gave Mancini’s Fantasticos a run for their (no doubt Balotelli-donated) Monday roast.

Latics rode their luck and did just about enough in that second half to warrant a more even result. In the end, however, Antolin Alcaraz’s needless challenge on the left of defence led to a Dzeko goal that ultimately decided the contest. Wigan came back strong, increasing in confidence as the game progressed, but just didn’t have that extra bit of quality up front. Though City had their chances, really good ones at that, they consistently failed to double their lead and Latics were always in with an excellent chance of at least a point. Certainly by the final fifteen minutes, the visitors opted to go defensive and always left themselves open to that equaliser and, of course, a potential winning goal from Latics.

The problem was getting that goal, and Wigan just couldn’t do it. Guess that’s why we’re still rooted to the bottom of the table – harsh but fair, I’d say. Perhaps the best chance fell to James McCarthy, who benefited from Hugo Rodallega’s willingness to chase lost causes, but saw his shot blocked by Joe Hart. Had that hit the net, Wigan would have smelled more than just a drop of blood and that shock of all shocks would have still been possible. At the very least, we’d certainly have been in for a very interesting 20 minutes or so. That was it for clear-cut chances, however, and though Latics were a side revitalised in the second stanza, those shots on target deserted them once more.

Hugo Rodallega was the chief chaser of lost causes

Make no mistake, City had the quality to win by a greater margin. Through bad luck, bad judgement and some excellent saves from an on-form Al Habsi, they had just as much trouble breaching the Wigan goal line as the hosts did the opposition penalty area. The Citizens (do they mind being called that?) were well on top in the first half, and controlled the vast majority of it despite one or two pot shots from an eager Latics boasting the pacey Crusat and Moses. After the 60 minute mark, there was a clear shift from front to back as the visitors gave Wigan more room to breathe, potentially allowing their hosts a glimmer of an opportunity. When that luck is deserting you, as it has for City of late, this sort of thing is prone to happen and you sensed that equaliser was getting closer and closer as the minutes ticked by.

Ultimately, though Wigan had improved demonstrably in the final half hour, that same old problem of goalscoring reared its ugly head again. Not even a switch to 3-5-3 and later 4-2-4 in the final stages could yield many real opportunities beyond the odd Rodallega steal. City remained strong in defence and did what Liverpool and Chelsea couldn’t – beat Wigan at the DW Stadium. For Latics’ part, they certainly weren’t outclassed or outplayed but are still missing that final piece of the (Rodal)lego brick house and tonight it was nearer the top than the bottom. I hope you understand what I mean by that, because I don’t think I do.

Maynor Figueroa: Lucky boy?

On a more contentious note, perhaps the most talked about incident of the evening was a deliberate handball by Maynor Figueroa in the dying stages. Camping out on the halfway line as his side pushed forward, he momentarily panicked when he realised Sergio Aguero would probably be through on goal and palmed the ball away in blatant fashion. I’ll be the first to admit referee Atkinson was just a tad lenient in this case, and probably should have awarded the Honduran a straight red card. You could tell he wouldn’t, of course, and would not be bullied into changing his mind as certain referees undoubtedly would (not to name any names). This may be a biased opinion, but for staying strong and above all fair, his below average performance is somewhat forgiven. And that statement has nothing to do with the fact we need Maynor for our next game on Saturday, oooh no.

Speaking of this weekend, I was going to dedicate the final part of this post to previewing the weekend’s six-pointer with Mark Hughes’ QPR, but there is a more worthy cause.

All our perceived toils pale in significance to the recent unthinkable plight of Darlington Football Club, who were yesterday forced to sack their remaining playing staff. Win or lose, we are lucky enough to be in existence to this day, but The Quakers may disappear before Saturday even arrives. Darlington fans can take heart, however, from recent Phoenix Clubs such as Chester, Rushden & Diamonds and Rossendale who are now beginning to make some headway in the English football pyramid. The town of Wigan lost its last Football League club to The Great Depression but came back strong, albeit some three or four decades later. Granted, all but the eldest of Wigan football fans will know what it feels like for your beloved club to become extinct, but we wholeheartedly sympathise with your situation. Fingers crossed.

• BBC Sport match report

Vincent Kompany was appointed captain as Tevez struggled

In my own football supporting life, I have witnessed Manchester City, historically one of the big players in British football, fall from grace only to rather spectacularly clamber their way back to the toppermost heights, with the promise of more to come. It’s been a quite remarkable transformation that one can draw some parallels with Wigan’s own rise to prominence. Not quite to the extent of City, but a noteworthy achievement nevertheless, and that divisional ascent can be regarded of something of a shared experience.

In some ways, not much has changed. Last year, I wrote about the ‘Special Relationship‘ Wigan and Man City share. I noted that the first meeting between a Wigan football team and today’s Mancunian opponents occurred over a century ago, when Wigan County only just lost 1-0 to City in an FA Cup First Round match. It goes to show that the history of encounters between the towns is longer than one may care to think, and one perhaps befitting of the clubs’ geographic locations. After all, we’re practically neighbours –it can take less than an hour to get to East Central Manchester from Wigan Wallgate– and it’s not a good idea to go poking around with the Rottweilers next door.

With Man City back in the ascendency and regarded as many people’s favourites for the 2011-12 Premier League, Wigan faced something of an ominous task. City’s squad(s) of superstars were wholly expected to hammer little Wigan into a soft, malleable substance ripe for a good kicking over the Ship Canal and back to the slums of urban Wigan. “You’re a disgrace to the Metropolitan County,” they would bellow while simultaneously balancing three footballs upon their tremendously-skilled heads and taking a great (brightly-coloured, hand-made) boot to what once claimed to be a football club.

The effect of two weeks’ international duties was sure to add some spice to the contest, with players from both teams indulging in a spot of globe-trotting to participate in games as far afield as South America. Jet-lag or no jet-lag, City were humongous favourites, but there was, as always, that nagging thought that Wigan might upset the (fearsome and exceedingly expensive) juggernaut in some manner. That’s exactly what Martinez and his band of merry international gate-crashers set out to do, and they certainly gave it a go at the City of Ma- erm, Etihad Stadium. Phew, think I got away with that one.

Enough pandering to the big boys – what is this, a tabloid newspaper? Let’s get the Latics bias into full swing.

Match Report

For all Manchester City’s dominance in the first 35 minutes or so, they only managed a solitary 13th minute goal. Considering 16+ shots rained in on the Latics goalmouth during the first stanza, 1-0 was a fantastic scoreline for the visitors, and amazingly, it could have been even better.

Al Habsi did very well under hectic circumstances, pulling off a few good saves

There was some evidence that Latics’ passing/attacking strategy might begin to bear some fruit, and though they only managed the single shot on target, they were able to produce some decent spells of the possession in the opposition half. That is, after the first half hour, when the game could easily have moved further away from Wigan than Paul Merson from a dictionary. It didn’t though, and Merse still struggles to describe Wigan as anything other than ‘a bit bad’.

Carlos Tevez squandered a penalty after Adrian Lopez tripped David Silva in his own area, big Ali Al-Habsi diving well to his right to prevent the Argentinian’s spot kick from finding the net. Under extreme pressure, Latics did not crack and were still in the contest, only just. Lopez blew a deep sigh of relief and it was back to work for the Latics defence. Boy, were they made to work.

Once they saw through that initial, extended period of mass pressure, during which time City hit the woodwork about six times and came close on almost twice as many occasions, Wigan did their best to fight back. Half chances came, offering some hope that this contest was in no way over just yet. Victor Moses was the leading light of this resurgence, with Di Santo and Rodallega also playing their part with a selection of (sometimes ambitious) efforts. Some physical play led to a period in which the visitors actually started to boss the midfield, and Wigan finished the half in the ascendancy. Of course, that defensive uncertainty remained, but then I suppose that is to be expected against a team of such quality as Manchester City.

We await the inevitable Moses goal explosion - it's only a matter of time

Wigan continued this rebuilding process into the second half, and actually emerged looking the better side. Victor Moses continued to question the City defence and the passes flowed well. The only thing missing was a goal, which Hugo Rodallega was unlucky not to have got as Joe Hart somehow fumbled the Colombian’s shot past his right hand post. Who played the feed ball? That’s right, it was Our Victor.

This was the visitors’ last real opportunity before the game was over as a contest, Sergio Aguero completing a superb hat-trick before 70 minutes were on the clock. He was withdrawn soon after, and Latics were left wondering how much different the scoreline might have been without the Argentine among City’s ranks. The answer? Well, we probably would still have lost, but only just.

Sensing a chance to experiment, Martinez withdrew Di Santo and Watson, bringing on Jordi Gomez and newcomer Albert Crusat to replace them. Though he was often muscled off the ball with great ease, the Pocket Rocket, as I shall henceforth call him (maybe), made some headway by picking the odd superb pass in some smooth Latics attacking moves. There’s still no real firepower in front of goal, but then Wigan historically have problems scoring against the better teams away from home. On that basis, 5 shots on target –precisely half the total accrued by the home side– represented a decent effort against the Champions elect.

Hugo Rodallega will get better

Man City continued to trouble Wigan up until the final whistle, Johnson forcing Al Habsi into a half decent save and curving another shot just past the Omani’s right hand post. Aguero remained the only goalscorer on the afternoon, though, as the game passed itself to a sombre, sedate finish. On 70 minutes, Latics would certainly have settled for that.

On the whole, Wigan gave a very good impression of themselves and could have come away from the City of Etihad stadium (what, isn’t that what it’s called?) with a goal – something not many teams will be able to say they achieved this season, methinks. The attacking play was promising and far better than many, including myself, expected. At the back, well, that’s better left unsaid, for in the end it was all about Man City, at least according to the press. In actuality, Latics were definitely a part of this contest, and certainly no disgrace. Just remember that as you read through reams of lovingly-crafted (?!) prose about Sergio Aguero and Man City in tomorrow’s newspapers.

Yes, Latics’ winning run has come to an end, but I feel there is much more to come yet. You’d be silly not to watch this space, for there are two more games to come in the space of seven days. I sense some success, even if Roberto Martinez is far from happy with today’s performance. Well, I guess we did lose 3-0…

Conor Sammon, the potential saviour (Credit: Alasdair Middleton)

Isn’t it funny how one heavy loss –which, I must reiterate, was largely expected– can change the mood at a club to such an extent? Well, I say ‘club’ when I mean ‘the fans’, because after the shenanigans of last week, Roberto remained as philosophical as ever. Should we expect anything else? The guy’s a true professional, certainly cut out for the highest level even if his team isn’t playing that way right now. Might be a few years before we see Bob make some progress in the Premier League (or even elsewhere in Europe, probably his Spanish homeland), but it feels like we’re the guinea pigs right now.

Forget that feeling of helplessness for the moment, for in much the same way one loss can make us all so horribly pessimistic we wouldn’t be out of place at a Coldplay concert (two Coldplay digs in two weeks! I believe that’s a JWAW record), it only takes one big performance –and by that I mean a win– for a whole different perspective to be cast upon our season. One result on its own wouldn’t keep us up, but the confidence it could instil would stand us in good stead for the proverbial mountain we have yet to climb.

And yes, I would call it a mountain. The main problem is that there are teams better set for survival than the vulnerable tactics we’re locked into for the remainder of the season – namely they have guys that can score goals and are set up to do so. They have forward-thinking players used to occupying the traditional scoring outlets and favour goals over performances. In our favour, we’re now all but back to full strength and, thanks to that Clattenburg fellow (thank goodness he was so scared to brandish his cards), were free of suspension worries for today’s game – we were gonna need everyone and more for this.

Sadly, it emerged that Charles N’Zogbia could only make the substitute bench, resulting in a slightly different starting lineup to last week. Cleverley, ineligible for the clash with United, was the like-for-like replacement, filling in on the right wing. Steve Gohouri was dropped (to many cheers, no doubt) in favour of Adrian Lopez, and he had a pretty good game. In fact, the defensive line did alright as a whole and came forward to some effect when required.

Speculation had been growing since Conor Sammon‘s omission from the reserve side in midweek over whether the Dubliner would make his Latics début this weekend. Franco di Santo, well he’s alright at what he does, but it sadly doesn’t involve scoring goals. Hugo Rodallega is great, but doesn’t see himself as your bog standard out-and-out attacker – you can just tell he wants to be a left midfielder.

What we’ve missed for so long is a proper attacker with a knowledge of where the net is (if you’ll excuse the unintentional pun), and Sammon could just fit into that role. It might seem like I’m clutching at straws, but we’re unfortunately at that stage now, which is why I, and many others, have been itching for someone like he or Callum McManaman to be given a chance. Let’s put it this way: he’ll never score on the bench, and now’s as good a time as any. I can understand why Bob’s reluctant –he likes to slowly bed his players into the side– but I’m of the view that it’s better to take a punt this weekend than when we’re consigned to relegation. Not to give anything away (though you probably know too well the outcome of this game by now), but take that punt Roberto did, handing Sammon a late substitute appearance. Did it all come too late?

It’s fair to say the home side bossed the first half, though Latics weren’t without their periods of pressure. Their best two chances came via a Rodallega header and, in what could have been a pivotal moment, a McCarthy left footer blazed wide. Had he hit the target, it would surely have left Joe Hart with no chance. City finished the half the stronger, and bolstered this dominance with a 38th minute goal courtesy David Silva. Or, should I say Al Habsi, who forgot to wash his hands after buttering some toast prior to the game. Yes, did you know toast is a delicacy in Oman? Neither did I, because I just made that up. Whatever the case, the Latics keeper spilled the Spaniard’s shot to gift City the lead. There was an ever so slight deflection off the foot of Caldwell, but you’d have still expected a goalie of Habsi’s quality to pouch it.

The second half was a completely different story. Wigan controlled the game, passing well, intercepting their hosts with relative ease and having the best of the opportunities. Far from being outplayed as they were last week, the visitors enjoyed plenty of possession and, on balance, ought to have got something from the game. Unfortunately, the lack of a goalscorer was made all to evident once again, the difference between one –perhaps even three (and not even the most hardened of City fans would say it wouldn’t have been deserved)– points this evening.

The introduction of Charles N’Zobgia (so is he injured or not then?) after 60 minutes did wonders for our prospects and injected some pace and threat into proceedings. By the 80th minute, though, this had began to die out as City closed on a nervy but seemingly inevitable win. Noticing that things had become flat in the attacking department, Martinez subbed Diame –who had been very good for 70 minutes but became very sloppy– with Conor Sammon to give the Irishman his Latics debut. It almost proved a masterstroke, a punt that so nearly paid off.

Really up against it: Roberto Martinez

In the 93rd minute of the game, after a nice little passing movement with Rodallega, Sammon found himself through on goal for what would surely have been the equaliser at this late stage. The Dubliner did well to muscle off Lescott and got away his shot. As the ball rolled towards the corner of the net you’d have been forgiven for thinking this to be a rare moment of justice in an increasingly depressing season, but agonisingly, it bobbled just inches wide. The whole incident almost played out in slow motion as Sammon reeled away, head in hands, so close to achieving what would have been a dream start to his Wigan career, erasing the memory of Mauro Boselli in one fell swoop. It’s moments like this that make you wonder whether we’re destined for the Championship, whether the powers that be ever intended for Little Wigan to be punching so far above their weight for so long.

This, as you can imagine, is very hard to swallow for anyone remotely associated with Wigan Athletic. What with teams around us getting favourable results, it’s easy to jump to the conclusion that our fantastic time in England’s top flight is all but up. Latics remain rooted to the bottom of the table, devoid of a man who can physically force the ball to cross the opposition goal line.

Except maybe not. Maybe Sammon should have been given more of an opportunity – surely this would have been a better setup, to try something new? Sammon could well be the man, but we may never know. I’d be tempted to start him against Birmingham two weeks from now, but it remains to be seen whether Bob thinks the same way.

Gareth Barry steered his team to a comfortable away win

Right, this afternoon wasn’t pretty so I’ll spare you too many gory details. All you need to know is that Wigan lost. This was partially down to the fact their presence in the opposition half was, shall we say, less than adequate, at least if you see scoring goals as your primary target in a football match.

The home side weren’t completely outplayed, though they could have been had City found their straps earlier. In the end it was a case of ‘get in there, do the job and get out’ as they looked to play out the final minutes following their second goal. I guess we can be thankful for that, but Wigan once again lacked any potency. Sound familiar? Well, it should.

Latics’ only shot on target in the first half came on 29 minutes, and if you consider that was the first time either team had challenged the opposition goalie, you get a fair picture of how the first half an hour went.

A cautious Man City were the better team for 15 minutes, but Wigan came back into things, earning themselves a fair slice of possession. Still no end product, however, and once again we were made to pay. On 43 minutes, a Joe Hart goal kick sliced off the back of a defender’s head and into the path of Carlos Tevez. It could hardly have fallen better for the Argentinian, who duly chipped Ali Al-Habsi to give City the lead going into the break.

From then on, Mancini’s men were in control, and though Wigan enjoyed the odd attack they would all ultimately prove fruitless, mostly petering out before they reached the penalty area. By the time Yaya Toure volleyed a second on 70 minutes, things were all but settled as, up to this point, Wigan didn’t even look like scoring. Which, as I’ve alluded to, is a bit of a handicap when you’re looking to win (or even draw, in some cases) a game of football.

Vincent Kompany didn't have much to do

Latics’ best chance of the game came on 75 minutes as Momo Diame miscued a volley way over Joe Hart’s crossbar, and had that gone in, the final 15 could have been competitive. As it didn’t, though, it was relatively easy for City to play out time for what would ultimately be a comfortable away win.

I will give Martinez some credit for the replacement of Mauro Boselli with Franco Di Santo in the starting line-up. The only problem with this was that we were left with the absence of a man for Hugo Rodallega to play off, which in some ways was a step backwards, even if Charles N’Zogbia stepped up to fill the void every now and then. The result was a setup that still feels experimental, and once again reliant upon getting an early goal to achieve any real success.

Never mind, for we have an ailing Birmingham to come in just under a week. A chance, perhaps, to snatch a point or three on the road? I’d hope so, but I think we might have see a little bit of improvement for that to happen. Wednesday’s encounter with Preston in the Carling Cup could provide us with such an opportunity, but for some reason I fear the worst.

It's lonely at the back: Vladimir Stojkovic struggled to fill Kirkland's boots

Now, you’re looking at the scoreline from this game and I know what you’re thinking; Latics were absolutely hammered by a City side of superior quality with world class players and a hundred times more footballing nouse. Well, I’ll tell you now that you are wrong and a 3-0 loss does not do Wigan Athletic justice, not one iota.

In fact, up until just before the hour mark they were looking good for a draw, perhaps even a win. But then came one of those game-changing decisions by the inexperienced Stuart Attwell, a momentary rush of blood to the head that resulted in Gary Caldwell being dismissed for a challenge on Carlos Tevez just outside the Wigan penalty area.

The referee, who only had a partial view of the incident, decided the Scot had shown reckless intent as he lunged for the ball, despite the fact it was there to be won, the Wigan defender only had eyes for it and never even so much as touched Tevez with his leading leg. What’s more, he even won the ball relatively cleanly.

The incident was made to look far worse by the fact Caldwell’s foot finished up about twelve inches off the ground and also because Tevez went down as though he’d been hit by a tractor or something. Then again, this wasn’t the only time this happened, and exactly what we’ve come to expect from the Argentinian. But we shall let this pass because Tevez himself was completely blameless, even if he did jump into the tackle two-footed himself. Besides, any self-respecting South American would have done the same in that position.

If this all sounds a bit of a bitter perspective then it probably is, but that one incident turned the course of the whole game on its head. Up until this point, Wigan arguably looked the better team, controlling possession in midfield and making Patrick Vieira look like some sort of security guard or something – he just stood and watched as Wigan completed pass after pass and took shot after shot at the City goal. Then again, I don’t really rate Vieira as a signing at this point in his career anyway.

Paul Scharner: if only he could finish...

Paul Scharner ended up with about four chances throughout the game, coming closest after a Moreno free kick trickled its way through the wall to leave the Austrian with a wonderful opportunity to slot it past Shay Given. On this occasion, the City keeper made an excellent save, but in every other instance Scharner completely failed to hit the target. This isn’t to say he didn’t work hard, simply he isn’t a natural forward and has been played out of position not only in this game but pretty much all season.

He would, however, get his chance to take up the centre back role for a while after Caldwell’s red card, a position he once again vacated in the latter stages as Steve Gouhouri was given a run out. By the time 90 minutes were up, Scharn had been switched around more times than an Austrian ballet dancer with his underpants stuck up his bottom.

As for the hosts, they had plenty of chances of their own, Carlos Tevez twice coming within a hair’s (or should that be hare’s, what with it being Easter week?) breadth of a goal during the first half. The first of these was somehow saved at point blank range by Latics stand-in keeper Vladimir Stojkovic (Chris Kirkland was ruled out on the day of the game with a mixture of illness and injury). At the time, I reckoned it to be a decent stop, but after viewing his performance from the rest of the night, I’m inclined to change my mind and say there was an element of luck about it.

The Serb never looked comfortable, but fortunately was relatively unchallenged for the majority of the game. This changed, however, when Stoj gifted City an opportunity they could not miss on 75 minutes. Yep, you heard me right – all three of Man City’s goals came in the final fifteen minutes of the game, but as soon as that first goal went in things were pretty much over.

In actual fact I’m inclined to suggest it was the sending off that killed things. Although Wigan looked sprightly immediately following the incident, perhaps spurred on by the perceived injustice, Moreno’s excellent curling shot just wide of a diving Shay Given’s right post was to be their last opportunity of the night.

Well, I suppose there's still a small chance Caldwell's red card could be rescinded

Can we count the Latics side that appeared yesterday evening as ‘patchwork’? With Kirkland, Boyce and N’Zogbia all unable to take their place in the starting lineup — combined with Hendry Thomas limping off injured on 53 minutes — you could argue Wigan did well to even compete, considering the flimsiness of their fringe squad. One curiosity to note is the fact the supposedly still-recovering N’Zogbia actually played the final 35 minutes, looking good in the short time it remained 11 vs 11. Latics will be hoping he, and the aforementioned crocks, will be okay to face Fulham on Easter Sunday.

Speaking of Sunday, I predict that if Wigan produce the same performance as they did for 75 minutes yesterday, they will have no problem dispatching a Fulham side completely focused on their European exploits this campaign. Marcelo Moreno had his best performance in a Wigan shirt, following a solid turnout against Burnley last week, and I daresay he’ll be on the scoresheet sooner rather than later. Mind you, we said that about Jason Scotland and there is a very real possibility he could go a whole Premier League season without scoring.

The important thing is that we do not let Monday’s defeat knock our confidence. Wigan are starting to find some form and play the football we know they can – are things starting to click? Well, I’ll reserve judgement on that when we actually start getting some results. Until then, my bottom will continue to be squeaking so loud you could hear it in Cheetham Hill.

For longer than I can remember, Wigan Athletic have had a special relationship with Man City that even George Bush and Tony Blair might recognise as a ‘friendship’. You see, it may be slightly off the radar to newer Latics fans (such as I, in fact), but the Blues have always been there to lend a hand where it’s been needed.

The first competitive game between Man City and a Wigan side was in 1898, when newly-formed Wigan County — the earliest attempt at establishing a football club in the town — unluckily lost 1-0 in an FA Cup Round One match.

As far as Wigan Athletic goes, the on-again, off-again relationship between the two towns can be traced back as far as 1966 when City visited Wigan for the grand opening of newly-installed floodlights at Springfield Park. After a close-fought FA Cup tie at Maine Road in 1971, the Latics would face their Manchester neighbours once more during the Seventies: an illustrious friendly at Springfield Park just one year before Wigan’s inception to the Football League. The rest, as they say, is history, and Manchester City played a big part in making it so.

It wasn’t until the late Nineties that Wigan-City contests became something of a semi-regular occurrence. Perhaps the most memorable of these was a Division 2 playoff match – the final ever game to be played at Springfield Park, which ended in a creditable 1-1 draw. Though Wigan would ultimately lose out in the two-legged tie, they would gain a modicum of revenge by beating City 1-0 in a 2002 Worthington Cup match thanks to a 35th minute Neil Roberts volley.

And that pretty much brings us up-to-date in the potted history of notable Latics-City contests. Monday night’s game sees perhaps the strongest Man City side of recent times take on a club in transition as the Roberto Martinez-led Latics pass and bumble their way to (hopefully) Premier League safety. City’s own Roberto M is looking to push for a Champions League place in what looks to be a competitive end-of-season run-in.

Right, that’s the (shamelessly biased) Wigan perspective. What we need at this point is an expert. Not just an expert, but a Manchester City expert; a lifelong supporter and professional Man United hater. Well, his blog’s URL states that Man U ruined him, so he must be. Paul Doleman of Bert Trautmann’s Neck has very kindly agreed to be interviewed on topics including Monday’s match, his side’s prospects for the season and a few other things too.

JWAW: How long have you been supporting Man City, and what are your favourite/abiding memories of your time as a fan?

Paul: My Mum and Dad signed me up for City Junior Blues before I was born, so there’s never been a time I can remember not supporting City. I was born in Longsight and most kids in our street were City fans.

My first City Game was in the 60s and away (sort of), just down the road at Edgeley Park, where City played Stockport County and I could barely see over the concrete wall at the edge of the pitch. My Mum lifted me up and a nice copper gave me a wink and turned a blind eye to me dangling my legs over the top of it.

I remember Jonny Price, a County winger, dramatically rolling around as I think Tommy Booth put in a crunching tackle. Hearing thousands of travelling City fans singing throughout the game and seeing players like Franny Lee, Colin Bell and Mike Sumberbee up close was pure magic and I spent the next weeks nagging my mum for a Franny Lee poster and to go to Maine Road.

That Christmas the poster was up in my bedroom and I saw City play Everton at Maine Road. My cousin tried to persuade me to support a certain red team, tempting me with a George Best card, but I forcefully declined and so the roller coaster started – it’s definitely on the up now.

So many memories, highs and lows in supporting City, the 76 League Cup final and Dennis Tueart’s overhead goal, Dickov and the emotion of our play off and promotion from League 1, Bananamania, a new manager every week at times and always living in the shadows of illustrious neighbours.

Would you say you’re satisfied with the team’s performance this season, and do you remain optimistic about grabbing that Champions League spot?

Very happy, can’t believe things are happening so quickly, a squad of stars, good cup runs and a realistic chance of the Champions League, which I honestly think, given our run in we’ll clinch, but won’t be upset if we don’t. I’m not one of the foamers who call for the manager’s head when things get tough.

"Why'd you sack me, boss? I was doing a brilliant job..."

Hughes or Mancini?

I’m just behind whoever is in charge. I felt Hughes should have been given more time and now hope that we stick with a manager for 3 seasons with the full support of the owners. Mancini is a proven winner and has what it takes to build a real solid team – I want him to have a longer shot than Hughes, but with so much money behind the club I fear he might be another Avram Grant if we don’t get 4th spot.

What made you take up blogging about City? Were you influenced by fanzines/fan sites/forums/whatever to set up your own site?

I always used to read Chips n Gravy and King of the Kippax outside Maine Road so those had some influence, but I guess we’re all referees, we’re all managers and everyone one of us has kicked a ball. Football is a game of passion and opinion and I thought I’d share them on the blog rather than forums.

Are you confident of a win against Wigan? Who do you see as the key men for Monday’s clash?

Reasonably confident as we have only lost once at Eastlands in 12 months, but unfortunately that was a few days ago to Everton so perhaps confidence has been knocked.

Experience tells me that with City anything can happen and Wigan are well organized and play football. We should have enough with Tevez, Bellamy, Johnson and Barry and we really have to win it to continue a serious quest for 4th – so maybe that desire will be enough.

Wayne Rooney: key man

Couple of wild cards… Any thoughts on this summer’s World Cup, and are you in favour of the introduction of goal line technology?

It so easy to criticize the man in the middle, I know I was screaming at Peter Walton on Wednesday night, it really is a thankless task, but standards don’t seem to be getting any better, so if a piece of technology helps a few critical goal mouth decisions then I’m for it.

For the World Cup, I’m keeping my fingers crossed that Rooney stays fit, if he does then we should reach the quarter finals or beyond. I’d love to see Adam Johnson get a late call up and I guess his record means Crouch should be in there.

Guess we’ll lose on penalties somewhere, but I’ll enjoy it while it lasts.

Thanks for the invite and all the best to the Latics for the rest of the season.

Cheers, Paul. Good luck for Monday, but not too much.

• Check out ‘Interview with a Latic‘ at Bert Trautmann’s Neck for a more detailed Wigan perspective on Monday’s match, fish and chips and much more
• Image of Francis Lee courtesy The Daily Mail.

• Illarterate Flickr account

Bob's Big Break: Look, Mum, I'm on TV!

I said to myself before this game, “I’d be happy with a point”. Well, that’s what we got, but am I happy with it? Reasonably.

You see, Manchester City are everyone’s tip to break into the top four this season, and I would not be at all surprised if they did so – they certainly have the players for it, and a top boss to boot. On this basis, you’d say a point would be a good-ish result, nothing special but alright, for a side with aspirations of mid-table – a win would be great, but y’know, we’d settle for a point.

As it turned out, the DW crowd were once again robbed of a tight, enthralling finish by a sending off. That’s not to say Pablo Zabaleta shouldn’t have been given his marching orders – looked like a second booking from where I was sat, but I’ll have to check the MOTD replays because I sure as heck can’t remember the first yellow card he picked up. My mind’s all foggy, a bit like the pre-match conditions.

Unlike the Chelsea match, though, City played out the remaining twenty minutes or so relatively happy at one apiece, so there weren’t quite the chances of three weeks ago. Latics definitely saw a lot more of the ball than previously, however, and carved open a couple of close chances, but it was not to be.

Earlier, Charles N’Zogbia had poked Latics ahead on the stroke of half time, only for City to equalise just two minutes of play later. Hmm. Remind you of a certain other match at the DW this season? In many ways, things panned out in a similar manner to the Chelsea game – Latics go into half time 1-0 up, concede early in the second half, gain a one-man advantage etc.

Shaun Wright-Phillips: Caused Latics problems

There was also a penalty appeal from City, waved away by Alan ‘You’re Too Fat to Referee’ Wiley, who on the whole didn’t have a terrible game. Heh, says a lot about the state of modern football that I judge referees on how bad their performances were, but anyway, it’s another case of  ‘I didn’t see it’. Sorry to go all Arsene Wenger on you, but I really didn’t have the best view so I don’t feel qualified to comment on the penalty incident. In fact, you might ask how on earth I feel qualified to say anything at all, and you’d probably be right.

I will say that Wigan struggled to cope with the pace of Shaun Wright-Phillips, one first-half challenge in particular from Hendry Thomas — who received a booking for his sins — especially indicative of this. Going on precedent, it wouldn’t surprise me at all if replays showed Figueroa’s challenge was indeed unfair.

Penalty appeals and red cards aside, you’d have to admit it was an even match, and certainly not the overpowering many (including I) might have expected. Some might even say Latics just shaded proceedings, but damn their optimism! Everyone played terribly! Scharner’s too big for his boots! Etc. Nah, a point well earned in my (rather unreadable) book.

• BBC Sport match report.