Author Archives: JJ (Tony)

Wigan Athletic v Aston Villa Preview

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Match Previews, Other and tagged with , ,

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It was billed as the grand finale to a topsy turvy season for Wigan Athletic.  The home match with fellow strugglers, Aston Villa, was to be crucial in determining Latics’ future in the Premier League. But sometimes things just don’t work out as you hope they will.

Wigan Athletic go into their last match at the end of  a remarkable eight year stay in the Premier League. They come out of it stronger than when they went in. Latics now have a strong identity, a sound infrastructure and a much increased fan base. The wonderful cup final victory has gained them millions of admirers all over the world, not just through the result, but by the style with which they played.

The encounter with Aston Villa allows the opportunity for fans to celebrate those eight years and to savour the incredible achievement of winning the FA Cup. The match also gives Roberto Martinez the opportunity to blood young players outside the pressure-cooker atmosphere that has prevented him doing so in these past years of fighting relegation.

Despite looking a poor side for most of the season,  Villa have maintained their Premier League status through an end of season rally. Much of that upturn in results  was down to  goals from the striking partnership of Gabriel Agbonlahor and big Belgian striker, Christian Benteke, who has netted a remarkable 19 goals in his first season in England’s top league. Moreover Agbonlahor’s pace has often proved a thorn in the side for Wigan – he has scored 5 goals against them in previous encounters.

Benteke will not be lining up at the DW Stadium on Sunday due to a red card received in the home loss to Chelsea. However, Villa do have Darren Bent ready to step in. Bent has been frozen out by Paul Lambert, making only seven starts all season, scoring two goals.

Like Wigan Athletic, Aston Villa are making every effort to keep a balanced budget and it looks like Bent – who reportedly earns £65,000 a week – could be playing his last match for the club. Villa’s problem is that he still has a couple of years left on his contract. Other high wage earners, Stephen Ireland and Shay Given, also remain under contract and will be difficult to budge.

Aston Villa have a fine record at the DW Stadium having won four matches and  drawn two over the previous six seasons. Latics will be keen to break this pattern.

The pressure is off for both teams in Sunday’s encounter. It promises to be a good match, with either team capable of winning.  Reports suggest that Jean Beausejour will make a welcome return from a hamstring injury and that Adrian Lopez has a chance of making the game after an injury plagued season. Lopez could well become an important player in the Championship next year and Martinez might be tempted to give him a run out.

It is conceivable that up to a half of the players who play for Wigan Athletic on Sunday will not be with the club next season.  In terms of team selection Martinez faces the dilemma of whether to stick with the nucleus of his cup  winning team or to look to the future. The match provides a great opportunity to give youth a chance.

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Latics go global

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Other and tagged with
Martinez

Photo courtesy of Nathan Peters

Last summer  Indonesia played a friendly against  Inter Milan in the Senayan Stadium in the centre of the city.  One expected to see the red and white colours of Indonesia in that ground that holds 65,000 people, but probably around 70% of the crowd wore the blue and black replica shirts of Internazionale. They had not traveled from Milan, but had traversed through the horrendous traffic of this huge city, wearing shirts that they had in their wardrobes.

Inter shirts are popular here and so are those of arch rivals AC Milan. However, the most common are those of Barcelona and the English giants – Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United.  Wigan Athletic shirts are not yet apparent on the Jakarta streets, but might well make an appearance soon.

The Daily Express claims that 500 million people  watched the FA Cup Final, with over 100 countries having television rights to the match. You can add to that a few more million who watched the match through p2p channels on the internet.

Whelan

Great photo from Nathan Peters. Who could have deserved this more than Dave Whelan?

Yesterday there was big buzz here. Latics’ win captured the imagination of the Indonesians, who are fascinated by the concept of a club the size of Wigan Athletic winning the FA Cup. They want to know more about the club and its history.  In a country of 260 million people you will have a lot of followers even if only a small proportion of them decide to join your side.

When I took my wife out yesterday to one of those giant air-conditioned shopping centres they have here I wore a Latics shirt. As soon as I walked in my shirt was the focus of attraction. Wigan Athletic are now famous, even in a city more than 7,000 miles away from Wigan.

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The Three Amigos at Wembley

I wish I could have been at Wembley on Saturday, but it was just not possible, with an impending move to another country coming up. However, the Amigos were represented –  my son and fellow writer Ned and his wife Kathleen flying across the Atlantic to watch it. They were joined by a third amigo in son-in-law,  Nate, who grew up on American football in Iowa, but has become a Latic fanatic.

Yesterday’s  Premier League results were like a dousing of cold water for Wigan Athletic fans. Latics now need to win at Arsenal on Tuesday and at home to Aston Villa to stay up. They were never easy games in the first place, but making Wigan play at the Emirates only three days after a cup final is just not fair. The odds have always been stacked against Latics, but the club is resilient and keeps bouncing back.

Whatever happens in the two league games it cannot detract from a wonderful cup final win. If anything has helped the image of the club it is the style in which the Wigan selection overcame a star-studded Manchester City team.

They have won admiration from all over the world, perhaps even among the most fickle of football people in their own country.

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A dream come true – Wigan win the FA Cup!

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Match Reports and tagged with ,

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The greatest performance in Wigan Athletic’s history saw an incredible victory through substitute Ben Watson’s 91st minute header.  This was no fluke – Wigan played the better football and were deserved winners.

Just over three weeks ago Latics had gone to Eastlands and had been the better team. That day the result went against them. Today they got what they deserved and left Manchester City shell-shocked.

Latics had been buoyed by the return of the excellent Antolin Alcaraz, joining Emmerson Boyce and Paul Scharner in the centre of defence. The end result was real solidity at the back – enough to keep out City’s talented forwards.

Roberto Martinez pulled off  a tactical master stroke by fielding James McArthur at right wing back.  He was a revelation. On the other side Roger Espinoza played with enthusiasm and no little level of skill, given the protection of the back three behind him.

Many Latics supporters had expected Martinez to bring back Ali Al Habsi, but he stuck with Joel Robles, who saved the game for his team with crucial interventions.

Wigan played controlled, skillful football throughout and once again made City look ordinary. Gael Clichy had an horrendous time coping with the pace and directness of Callum McManaman and Arouna Kone gave the City central defence a torrid time. James McCarthy and Jordi Gomez worked hard in midfield and Shaun Maloney showed what a high class player he is in the creative midfield role.

Given the sheer bad luck Latics have faced in the closing minutes against top teams, one was dreading a last minute goal from City. The turning point came when Pablo Zabalata was sent off after 84 minutes following a foul on McManaman, his second yellow card in the match. The tide had turned and one started to see the game going into extra time, with City’s ten men starting to look ragged. Watson spared Wigan the extra minutes with a well taken, opportunist header.

A wonderful win  that brought tears to the eyes.

Few would have believed that this dream would come true – except maybe Roberto Martinez!

The Good

Huge credit for this victory must go to manager, Roberto Martinez. He out-thought the highly experienced and successful Roberto Mancini. Wigan played to their  strengths and did not allow Manchester City to play to theirs.  Martinez’s tactics were spot-on.

Martinez refused to panic, given the horrendous injury situation he faced. He had the foresight to put two central midfielders into the wing back positions and it came off. He was to make what turned out to be probably the most inspired substitution of his career, bringing on match winner Ben Watson after 81 minutes.

Latics played without fear, despite the star-studded lineup Manchester City put out. Once again great credit to the manager for motivating his players, following the horrendous midweek defeat to Swansea.

Player Ratings

Joel Robles: 9 — An outstanding display from the young Spanish keeper, making several superb saves. His last ditch save from Carlos Tevez in the first half was crucial.

Emmerson Boyce: 8.5 — The admirable captain’s best performance in a central defensive position.

Antolin Alcaraz: 8.5 — His return made a huge difference to the defence. An excellent performance.

Paul Scharner: 8.5 — His best ever match for Wigan in the centre of defence. Showed great technique and concentration.

James McArthur: 8 —Did a great job in adapting to the wing back position. Full of heart and determination, with no mean level of skill.

Roger Espinoza: 8 — Full of running and enthusiasm. A key player for the future.

James McCarthy: 9 — Excellent as always. Bossed the midfield.

Jordi Gomez: 8 – Worked hard and covered a lot of ground. Substituted after 81 minutes.

Shaun Maloney: 8.5 – Once again looked a class act. Constantly probed the City defence looking for openings.

Callum McManaman: 9.5 – Maturing into a very fine player. Full of confidence and his direct running was a constant headache for Clichy and the City defence.

Arouna Kone: 8.5 – A high class centre forward: strong, fast, intelligent. Played a key role.

Substitutes:

Ben Watson: — Not long returned from a broken leg and scored the winner at a Cup Final. That will be something he will remember for the rest of his life.

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Proud day for Wigan as the fairy tale rolls into Wembley

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Match Previews, Other, Reflections, Specials and tagged with , , , , , , , , , ,
Latics' team for their debut match against Port Vale Reserves, Thanks to Ron Hunt and WiganWorld for photo.

Latics’ team for their debut match against Port Vale Reserves,
With thanks to Ron Hunt and WiganWorld for photo.

* this post was co-written by the father and son writing team, from the perspective of the Jakarta Jack, the father. 

My father loved Wigan Athletic Football Club. Hardly a minute would go by after the final whistle before he would launch into talk about the next match. Conversations – and in some cases, monologues – about line-ups, tactics and referees were a feature of my life as long as I can remember.

His love affair with the Latics began the year the club was formed in 1932, and never wavered until his passing in 2005. His devotion to such a modest club was difficult for others to understand in a region saturated with prestigious football clubs such as Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool and Everton. It was especially difficult to understand for the rugby fans in the area.

But my dad wasn’t too perturbed by that. In his 73 years as a supporter, he witnessed the transition from non-league to Division 4, all the way up to the Championship, or second division as it was known for most of his time. Wigan were second in the Championship under the leadership of Paul Jewell, propelled by the dazzling strike partnership of Nathan Ellington and Jason Roberts, when he passed away. The Latics were promoted to the Premier League four months later. They have remained there ever since.

Were you to tell my father that his Wigan Athletic would go on to spend eight consecutive years in the Premier League and reach both the League Cup and FA Cup finals during that period – he almost certainly would not have believed you. He would have beamed with pride.

Thankfully, pride is something that is passed down. My son and co-writer, Ned, once told me that,  while the inspiration for the name of this fan site was a tip of the hat to the symbolic arrival of Wigan’s Three Amigos from Spain –  a pivotal moment in Wigan’s rise up the tables and Whelan’s revolution – it also on a more personal level represented the relationship between himself, his dad and grandad, who all shared that same passion for the club.

Neither Ned nor I were at that very first Wigan Athletic match back against Port Vale Reserves back in 1932, but we each remember our first Latics experience and know the previous history thanks to my dad. We know where the club came from, and we know we are living the Wigan Athletic dream.

No matter what the result is on Cup Final Saturday, or the outcome of the relegation fight in the Premier League, Wigan Athletic have confounded people with their achievements. The club has come farther than any of us imagined in our wildest dreams, and their achievements will leave an indelible memory.

What’s more – the work that Roberto Martinez has done in his return as manager of the club has been transformative. Rather than playing the role of the little fish up for a Premier League cameo, his plan has been one of consolidation.

While Steve Bruce did a job in keeping the club in the top flight, the money he spent on players and their wages was hardly sustainable if Latics were to suffer a bad season and go down. There was no investment in youth development or infrastructure.

Martinez’s work to cut operating budgets, sell the top players in order to fund long-term growth sets the club up to survive for years to come. Sure – relegation is a threat each year and is to many clubs with more money, more fans and so on — but the club and its support are rapidly growing behind the scenes with every year that passes.

It is somewhat fitting, then, that Wigan’s rival in the final is Manchester City – not only a club with massive support, but also the beneficiary of the largest cash injection in world football thanks to their billionaire owner. In comparison with Wigan Athletic and Manchester City even David and Goliath seem evenly matched!

Only a deluded romantic would expect a Wigan Athletic squad depleted by injury, mentally worn-down, in the middle of the most intense Premier League survival fight to date, to beat Manchester City on Saturday. But if the club’s history is anything to go by, the seemingly  impossible can happen. The supporters of this club believe anything is possible because they are continuing to live it.

The Wigan Athletic story is far from over. Three matches in less than 10 days will determine whether the 2012-2013 season goes down in history as the year Wigan conquered the FA Cup, or survived for a ninth consecutive Premier League season against all odds.

But even if neither materialises, we could not be more proud of our club which takes pride in doing things in a sensible way and never gives up. Just to be in the FA Cup final, with the guarantee of Europa League football next season boggles the mind. A win on Saturday would just be icing on the cake.

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Wigan Athletic v Swansea City Preview

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Match Previews, Other and tagged with , , , , , ,

swans-preview

Following a nail-biting win at West Bromwich, Wigan Athletic entertain Swansea City at the DW Stadium on Tuesday evening. Since the Welsh team’s return to the top flight, Latics have been unable to beat them. The Swans won their last match at the DW with two beautifully taken goals from Gylfi Sigurdsson in March 2012.

Wigan desperately need to win this game, but can expect to meet resistance from a stubborn Swansea outfit. Michael Laudrup has kept up the good work of Brendan Rodgers and Roberto Martinez at the Welsh club. They continue to play that silky kind of football the Latics boss put in place there, but under Laudrup they can also play with a more pragmatic and direct approach.

The Swans have had some difficult recent fixtures against top teams and have not won for the last seven league matches. However, they still remain in 9th place and will be hungry to get a good result.

Both Latics and Swansea go into this game without key players due to hamstring injuries. Jean Beausejour is a major loss for Wigan, an unsung player  who covers huge distances each game, covering his defence and stretching the opposition defences by receiving the ball wide. He has provided an amazing 7 assists this year, putting him on a par with attacking midfield players like David Silva and Santi Cazorla.

Miguel Perez, better known as Michu, is unavailable for the visitors, probably for the remainder of the season.  Previously a midfield player, Swansea have converted him into a striker to such effect that he has scored 17 league goals in his first season in England.

Latics fans will be hoping that Antolin Alcaraz will be able to make his return  following the hamstring injury he picked up at West Ham. He has been badly missed in the Latics rearguard over the past couple of weeks.

Roberto Martinez’ dilemma will be who to play on the left of his defence. With both Maynor Figueroa and Jean Beausejour unavailable, he does not have a natural replacement.  Roger Espinoza substituted for Beausejour in that position on Saturday. Espinoza is always brimming with enthusiasm and he has no mean level of skill, but the left of defence is not his forte.

One wonders if David Jones might be available to take over now that his loan spell with Blackburn has been completed? Jones has played in the position before and his height can be useful when defending set pieces.

Given  the absence of an orthodox left back, Martinez will probably opt for a back three and wing backs.  If Alcaraz is back he will join Paul Scharner, plus one other in central defence. Young Roman Golobart came on in the second half at West Bromwich, although he looked nervous in that pressure cooker atmosphere.   Emmerson  Boyce could play in the centre of defence, allowing Ronnie Stam to return as right wing back. Stam continues to promise as an attacker, but his defensive work can leave much to be desired.

Gary Caldwell should not be forgotten. Although said to be continuing to struggle with his hip injury, the captain made a return at West Ham, only to be consigned to the bench for the past couple of games. He might well be back before the end of the season, but one wonders if he will be risked against a pacey Swansea side.

Given the congested fixture list coming up, Martinez might use more of his squad players. Ben Watson made a return on Saturday, following the broken leg he suffered in November. Martinez used him in a hybrid role, part holding midfield and part central defender. Watson did not do badly, but his lack of pace was exposed when the midlanders broke away for their first goal.

If Martinez does opt to play someone in that position he might go with the more speedy James McCarthy. Moreover he might not want to risk Watson for a second game in three days, following his long lay-off.

Martinez will be wary of burnout for young Callum McManaman and it can be expected that Franco Di Santo will either start or come on at a key stage in the match.

Robert Martinez is hopeful of winning his 150th Premier League game at Wigan on Tuesday. His challenge will be in finding the right lineup and in getting the best out of his players with Wembley coming up on Saturday.

This is not an easy match and the nerves will be jangling. The support and patience of the home crowd will be crucial. It could go down to the wire.

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