Jason Koumas: On his way

Also seemingly on his way out is Jason Koumas, who shall spend the forthcoming season on loan to Cardiff City, where I am sure he shall do extremely well. He seems to thrive in the Championship environment, but struggles for consistency at the higher levels these days.

At an initial price tag of £5.2 million, I would say Jase also failed to live up to expectations in the long term. He did score one more than Kapo, though, and will be remembered for his goal against Aston Villa in the first game of last season. At least his time at the club wasn’t a complete failure, more of a disappointment.

In (hopefully) more enterprising news, the new Wigan Athletic store — really a branch of DW will be open for business tomorrow afternoon Sports — with a ‘stock clearout‘ taking place. The official opening will be on Tuesday afternoon, so there’s no chance of a last minute cancellation due to a 9-1 hammering this time. At least, with the greatest of respect, I don’t expect Dundee to ‘do a Tottenham’ on Sunday afternoon.

Bob and co. will be in the Galleries at 2PM to launch Latics’ new home strip, but I still dunno where our away kit is hidden. Maybe the sheer negativity over last season’s ‘tangerine dream‘ has put the marketing department off to the extent we shall take to the pitch against Tottenham on the 28th in skins. Man, I know the government cuts are taking their toll on the country, but I never thought it’d get that bad. Before long, we may all need to donate our old replica away strips to stop our lads contracting pneumonia or something.

Martinez: Back in the public eye

Charles N’Zogbia, who certain members of the JWAW team seem to think is on his way to Birmingham (not myself though), has been called up to the French squad for their clash with Norway in midweek. We all know, however, that this is because all Les Bleus’ ‘best’ players have thrown their toys out of the pram, opening the door for Charlie and a bunch of other relative unknowns to sneak in almost unnoticed. Enjoy it while it lasts, people, for it’s only a matter of time before an even bigger drama queen reinstates the old guard in spectacular fashion.

Krappo couldn't hit it for a Twix.

More like a blessing full stop.

I think it’s fair to say that Olivier Kapo isn’t the most popular of guys down at the DW. Steve Bruce mystified fans throughout last season by continuing to play him in the attacking midfield position while many thought there were better players waiting on the sideline to readily take his place.

Certain fans, this one included, came close to tearing their hair out over his fifty yard pot shots that never even came within a double decker’s distance (that’s the bus, not the chocolate bar) of the opposition goalkeeper. Although he did manage one potentially crucial goal against Chelsea, this does not make up for the many other chances he wasted throughout the course of the season.

Every time his name appeared on the starting lineup, I’d think “oh, maybe he’ll do something good this time”. More often than not, though, I felt let down by his performance as he struggled against the best — and in some cases the worst — the Prem had to offer.

This season there are no excuses, what with the bazillions of quality midfielders now at the club. The Wigan Evening Post seem to be making a huge thing about how his injury will be a big blow to Martinez, but it would be silly to let this back page off-season filler propaganda scare you. Don’t look at it as a problem, but an opportunity for the other guys to show they are better than Mr. Kapo, leading to his eventual sale to Sunderland for more than we paid for him. As my Daily Mail reading Dad might say, ‘they’re not stupid, you know. It’s all about making money’.

Don’t get me wrong. He isn’t the worst player in the world, and will more than likely prove effective at Championship level (no doubt with Sunderland for the 2010/11 season), but surely a club with aspirations of Europe can do much better.