In the spotlight once again: Roberto Martinez

Last time on Jesus Was a Wiganer: this viewer was left in fear of Roberto Martinez’s future at Wigan Athletic following a ninth straight defeat in all competitions. Rumours had started to spread about the Spanish supremo, who was supposedly ‘set to walk out’ based on highly cryptic, Enigma-style clues tucked away in interviews with Dave Whelan.

It was all codswallop, of course. Expert crossword compilers and Mensa quiz book writers have confirmed there was no solid evidence beyond the recent extended run of bad results –which I take no delight in reminding you is now nearing three solid months in length– and the collective will of many a pessimistic Wigan Athletic fan.

You can, however, feel the seam beginning to come apart. I’m not sure if there’ll be as much confidence in Bob’s Latics prospects come Saturday evening, but we shall leave such speculation for, well, tomorrow evening. Continuing with the (tenuous) cricket analogy, we’ll be hoping to put off that mandatory ‘ball change’ for some time, but it all depends on how many wickets we take against Blackburn.

Moving on to strictly footballing matters, I won’t try to second guess Roberto’s choice of starting lineup, merely suggest a potential XI which could help facilitate an end to this results drought. But hey, I ain’t the big boss with authority to make such assumptions reality, so take it all with a pinch of salt; my recent pre-match predictions for how Roberto will configure the Wigan starting XI have been less than accurate, sometimes to the point of being potentially libellous.

Read the rest of this entry »

These previews are starting to follow an all too familiar formula of late: Latics need points to try and snap out of an extended losing run before the season escalates into a full-on disaster before we even hit December. Continuing in the positive vein I’ve resolved to take (mostly in the interests of preventing the onset of hair loss), such trivialities shall be skirted over in favour of a more forward-thinking attitude. On that note, let’s take a quick look at how Latics might lineup come 1.30pm on Sunday.

Wolves v Wigan Latics possible lineup

Given the absence of Gary Caldwell, one would suggest the exact formation of Wigan’s back four is subject to much speculation. However, I would be inclined to have Boyce ‘do a job’ in the centre of defence, which would not necessarily be all that problematic for the sometime centre back. There are alternatives, of course – Maynor Figueroa, who has occupied such a role for a couple of games this campaign, could also be switched to the centre. I wouldn’t favour this, however, as I’d rather have him (or perhaps Van Aanholt) at left wing back. Ben Watson may be forced to play a slightly more defensive role to cover any holes left by a more unfamiliar backline.

Read the rest of this entry »

Omani shot-stopper and former Bolton 'mon' Ali Al-Habsi will face his previous employers for the first time

Welcome back, Latic fanatics, to the weekly grind of domestic football. I sincerely hope you’ve had a good two weeks’ recuperation because you’re gonna need all your energy for this weekend’s absolutely massive north west derby.

No, I’m not talking about that Liverpool-Man United TV programme thingy Sky seem to be promoting incessantly, because an even bigger Lancashire rivalry is back for another instalment of biting, spitting and general loutish behaviour, at least if historical encounters are anything to go by. Not that I would condone such actions, of course. Well, at least not when the referee’s looking.

In terms of recent meetings between Latics and the Trotters, things have been fairly even:

Wigan v Bolton in the 2010-11 Season

• Feb 2011: Wigan 0-1 Bolton (FA Cup)
• Jan 2011: Wigan 0-0 Bolton (FA Cup)
• Jan 2011: Bolton 1-1 Wigan (Prem)
• Oct 2010: Wigan 1-1 Bolton (Prem)

Wigan and Bolton will probably be sick of the sight of each other after a whopping four meetings last season, despite the luxury(?) of an eight-month break. Though a similar outcome this weekend would not be hugely surprising,  a Latics hammering is always a possibility. This was borne out in Bolton’s 4-0 thrashing of Latics back in March 2010, a day I’m sure we’d all rather forget.

In terms of more recent form, both sides have been toiling at the bottom of the table with just one win apiece. Wanderers in particular have suffered – six straight losses just about trumps Wigan’s four while our 11 goals conceded pales in comparison to poor old Bolton’s 21. And we thought we had it bad. It must be noted, however, that four of the Trotters’ first seven Prem clashes have been against Liverpool, Man City, Man United and Chelsea, whereas Latics have only faced Man City and Tottenham in the same period. Quite obviously, this clash represents the ideal opportunity for both sides to kick-start their ailing season with three more than useful Premier League points.

Read the rest of this entry »

Roberto Martinez will not be concerned with off-the-pitch matters

Tomorrow afternoon, Roberto Martinez will return to the Liberty Stadium for the first time since departing some 28 months ago. He and fellow ex-Swan Jordi Gomez were met with a frosty reception when a good 3,000-strong troupe of Swansea fans travelled to the DW for a Carling Cup Fourth Round tie last October, so I shudder to think how bad it will be for them this weekend. I feel certain, however, that Martinez will keep his composure and exude much the same calm collectedness as he usually does, regardless of the occasion.

As expected, the tabloids carted out the tired old ‘first-day relegation six pointer’ following Latics’ 1-1 draw with Norwich. Variously described as ‘tepid’, ‘grating’ and ‘indicative of where the two teams will be come May 2012′, it’s fair to say the contest did not spark the interest of many mainstream journos. Who gives a monkey’s about them, though? To a man, they unanimously tipped Latics for the drop last season, and look how (in)correct that turned out to be. Forget the fact our fight went down to the very last day and one goal would potentially have doomed us, the fact remains that Wigan finished higher in the table than Wolves, who’ve been largely immune to the oft-demoralising relegation chatter this summer. Well, not entirely, but it seems Latics have once again been instated as favourites for the drop. Not that that means much to anyone with half a brain, mind.

It is true that our first home game of the 2011-12 Premier League campaign wasn’t the prettiest, but you can’t deny it was engaging and even exciting. But for some iffy finishing from Di Santo and Sammon and a referee seemingly oblivious to the existence of the penalty kick (it must be noted that the linesman gave the first, and that the referee flat out refused the second appeal despite being mere yards from the incident), Latics would have had a comfortable opening day win. You can definitely chalk it up as two points lost, but hey, things are still much rosier than this time last year. Heck, even Chelsea and Arsenal have struggled off the mark of late, so I think you can forgive little Wigan the odd slip-up.

Read the rest of this entry »