Category Archives: Player profiles

Sinclair to face Watford

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Player profiles and tagged with , , ,
Jerome Sinclair. Photo courtesy of Daily Telegraph.

Jerome Sinclair. Photo courtesy of Daily Telegraph.

The rumours have been circulating for days and must have been unsettling for at least a couple of members of the Wigan Athletic squad. With just nine games left in the season, Jerome Sinclair has signed for Wigan Athletic.

Sinclair is an 18 year old forward who has made one appearance in the Liverpool first team. That was in September 2012 when he came on as a substitute in a League Cup tie at West Bromwich, where coincidentally he had learned his early football under their youth academy. He was just 16 years and 6 days old at the time and holds the record of being Liverpool’s youngest-ever player.

Sinclair missed much of last season through injury, but has scored 24 goals at youth and under 21 levels this season.

Although Sinclair is highly rated at Liverpool, many Latics fans are already questioning the acquisition of such a young and inexperienced player so close to the end of the season, giving him little time to settle in with his teammates and the style of play.

Mackay had publicly stated that he was looking at the loan market for a player who could get on the end of those loose balls in the opposition penalty box. He clearly believes that the 18 year old might be that person.

In the meantime both Billy Mckay and Martyn Waghorn will surely be thinking their days at Wigan are numbered. McKay was only signed at the end of January, but has since not made a single start. Last week a seemingly crazy rumour was flying around about Waghorn going on loan to another club. Given the current developments it now remains within the realms of possibility.

Following James McClean’s tenth yellow card on Saturday he will be unavailable for the Watford game tomorrow night. Fans will have their fingers crossed that Leon Clarke will be back from injury to lead the line. The big striker adds physicality to the attack that will be needed against a strong Watford side, currently in second place.

Should Clarke not be available it is possible that Sinclair will start, assuming the paperwork of his loan move is completed in time. It is reported that he has been training with the Wigan squad today.

There remains a possibility that either Mckay or Waghorn may be involved. But Mackay has already thrown the 17 year old Liverpool winger Sheyi Ojo into his starting lineups. Is he going to repeat it with Sinclair?

Interestingly enough at 5 ft 8 in Sinclair is of a similar height as Mckay and Waghorn. Let’s hope that if he does come on at some stage in the match, the ball does not continually fly over his head as the defenders hoof the ball forwards, as has happened so often to Latics strikers this season.

Bringing in Sinclair at this stage of the season can be considered either a bold move or smacking of desperation.

Check Mackay’s comments on Sinclair by clicking here.

Maybe Mackay will have the last laugh if the young man helps Latics avoid relegation.

Kim Bo and Jordi

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Player profiles and tagged with

 

James McClean breaks down the left of the box. His cross bobbles on the rutted surface, looking like it is going out of play. But in comes Jermaine Pennant to catch the ball before it goes out of play. His pass allows Kim Bo Kyung a simple tap-in.

It was to prove to be a very important goal because it shattered Blackpool’s brittle confidence to give Malky Mackay’s Latics a lifeline, at least for the time being. But even more than that what was Kim Bo doing a yard away from the goal line? How many times this season has a Wigan central midfield player got himself so far into the opposition penalty box this season from open play? If they had done it more often the Latics goal tally would never have been so low. But in a team that is down on its knees and worried about leaking goals, the midfield players have tended to hang back to support a shaky defence.

Kim Bo is not the best of tacklers, but he has a sublime left foot and his style is reminiscent of Jordi Gomez. Having previously been described as “lightweight” and “a player who goes down too easily” by some at Cardiff, he surprised Bluebirds supporters with the quality and endeavour of his play against them last week. In fact he has been Latics’ most consistent performer in recent games.

When Mackay signed Kim Bo after his contract at Cardiff had been cancelled by mutual consent, there was by no means an overjoyed reaction by most Wigan fans. Some looked on him as never having made the grade in Wales and Latics were taking another Cardiff cast-off, following on the heels of the unpopular Don Cowie and Andrew Taylor. Some cynics even suggested Mackay had signed the Korean to help his case with the FA, referring to a particular email that had seemed to be referring to Kim Bo.

There are certainly similarities in his style of play to that of Gomez. Like the Spaniard, Kim Bo plays best in the centre of midfield, rather than being dispatched to the wing where he does not receive enough possession. He is the type of creative midfielder that Latics have lacked since Gomez left.

One wonders if Mackay reads the Wigan Athletic fan sites, message boards and social media. Fans had been asking for twin strikers for months after seeing the demise of Andy Delort and Oriel Riera in the lone centre forward role. Mackay has opted for a bold 4-4-2 formation, with only one “ball winner” in central midfield. With injuries to Chris Herd and William Kvist, Mackay put Kim Bo alongside James Perch in central midfield. Granted Kim Bo is not the best of tacklers, but he cannot be faulted for his workrate and commitment.

Mackay will also have appeased many supporters by leaving Cowie and Taylor out of the side, following a series of mediocre performances.

However, one good result against a team as poor as Blackpool does not mean that the outlook is much rosier. There are some difficult games coming up and Mackay will need to tweak his formation as the fixtures start to rain in.

The starting lineup against Blackpool was attacking, at least on paper. But many fans would have had a sense of foreboding in seeing a central partnership of McClean and the frustrating Marc-Antoine Fortune. The big man from Cayenne has survived three managers now at Wigan and regularly appears in the starting lineup despite scoring just one goal in 22 league appearances this season.

The visit to Carrow Road on Wednesday is not going to be easy. Latics have a poor record at Norwich and the Canaries are one of the in-form teams at the moment, with a 2-0 victory in the East Anglian derby against Ipswich on Sunday.

It will be interesting to see if Mackay will continue with his attacking lineup. It would not be a big surprise to see him put in an extra holding midfielder in place of a forward.

But let’s hope that Kim Bo Kyung is played in the central midfield position where he needs to be to show his true range of talents.

Kvist – the best of Rosler’s signings

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Player profiles and tagged with , , , ,

 

He is among the most eloquent of footballers, a real professional and an inspiration in Wigan Athletic’s fight against relegation. William Kvist finally got the recognition he deserved on Saturday, when he was named captain of the team that lined up against league leaders Bournemouth.

But why did it take so long for Kvist to get a regular place in the starting lineup? What was in the minds of managers Uwe Rosler and Malky Mackay in leaving him out for so long? The Denmark captain has played in the Bundesliga and the Premier League, let alone making 53 appearances for his country over the past eight years.

The cynics might say that Mackay has brought the Dane in from the cold mainly because of his ability to launch long throws. But Kvist is much more than that. He brings stability to a midfield that had struggled to maintain possession. You will invariably see him as the last man in front of the back four, strong in the tackle and his reading of the game allowing him to make important interceptions. Kvist is not the kind of player who will play box-to-box and it is rare that he scores a goal. He keeps things simple, organizing the midfield from behind, rarely wasting the ball.

Kvist has been part of the rollercoaster ride that has characterized Wigan Athletic’s season. His signing at the end of the summer transfer window was overshadowed by those of Andy Delort and Adam Forshaw, plus the announcement of Emyr Huws being signed on a permanent basis. However, it looked like Rosler had done a good job in the transfer market and hopes of promotion were once again on the table.

Five months on and Latics are in a dire situation. Second from bottom and seven points adrift of safety. Many fans blame Rosler’s signings for what has happened. After all, last season’s team was good enough to reach the FA Cup semi-final and the Championship playoffs. Surely it was the arrival of Rosler’s new men that brought the club down?

There may well be some truth in their assertion. Rosler had inherited players from the Martinez and Coyle eras, who had adopted his “high pressing” philosophy to some degree. Latics took a lot of teams by surprise last season by that tactic, even if they weren’t able to hold it for more than the first thirty minutes in most games. It was often enough to get ahead in the first half and hold on to that lead by the skin of their teeth. But it produced results, at least until the other teams got wise to it.

Ironically Rosler brought in ten players of his own, but neither they nor the others seemed willing to buy into the high pressing approach. In the absence of high pressing there was little else remaining as Latics were then lacking a consistency in approach. Bouts of nervy defenders playing the ball across the back were interceded by hoofs from the goalkeeper to the lone front man.

Sadly Rosler’s new men did not appear to be supporting him on the field. Many of those from previous managerial regimes at Wigan certainly weren’t.

Many of those fans who blame Latics’ current demise on Rosler’s signings will say that most of them simply were not good enough. Delort, Forshaw, Oriol Riera and James Tavernier have all gone, having been unable to establish themselves in the starting lineup. Huws is out injured for the rest of the season. Aaron Taylor-Sinclair has been injured for some time and it looks like he is now way down on the totem pole with the arrival of Gaetan Bong. Martyn Waghorn has been only on the fringes, despite having made a good impression last season.

But Andrew Taylor has started in 25 of the 29 league matches this season, and Don Cowie in 21. The cynics will say that the two are automatic choices for Mackay, having played under him at Cardiff and Watford. Neither has a high popularity rating with the DW crowd.

That is not the case with William Kvist. His recent all-action performances, together with his leadership skills and positivity about Latics getting out of their current predicament, are making him into the kind of player that fans really appreciate.

If Latics do avoid relegation then they would do well in securing a contract extension for the Dane, who clearly has much to offer.

At this point in time he looks like the best of Rosler’s signings.

 

Other Amigos articles on William Kvist:

Kvist is back – but for how long?

A Danish fan’s view of William Kvist

 

Tavernier exit sounds the alarm bells

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Player profiles and tagged with , , , , , , ,

He came with rave reviews from Rotherham. Uwe Rosler was excited about his new signing saying that:

“…… he is still learning and, at just 22, I feel that we can provide the right sort of environment for him to grow and develop into a really important player for this club.”

Can James Tavernier still become a really important player for Latics or is the writing on the wall that he will not be returning?

Tavernier has been sent on loan to Bristol City until the end of the season. It leaves Latics with James Perch and Emmerson Boyce to share the right back/wing back positions. Perch is superb defensively but despite scoring some key goals over the past year he can hardly be labelled a skilful attacking wing back. Boyce was indeed that when playing in the Premier League under Roberto Martinez, but the years have crept up on him. At 35 he just does not have the pace he used to.

Has Malky Mackay already written off the Bradford lad? Or is he sending him to “the right sort of environment” where he can further develop his game?

Tavernier showed a lot of promise in the pre-season where he was used in midfield. He put in some great crosses and scored a stunning goal at Rochdale. He made his competitive debut in the first match of the season, the 2-2 home draw with Reading, as a 72nd minute substitute. Although he made the starting lineup in the next match at Burton in the League Cup, Rosler continued to use him as a substitute in the league.

However, Perch’s unavailability led to Tavernier being at right back against Brentford in mid-October. The young player had a run of four more games, but after an indifferent performance at Brighton he lost his place. It was another six weeks before Tavernier made his return as a wing back in the 2-0 win at Leeds, continuing in that position against Sheffield Wednesday and Bolton.

After making seven starts and four appearances off the bench, Tavernier is joining a Bristol city side currently second in League 1. The environment there will certainly be brighter for him than the current case of Wigan, where morale is approaching rock bottom. After playing for a struggling side Tavernier’s confidence could use a boost.

However, the value in sending Tavernier back to League 1 is questionable. He has already more than proved himself in that division and a loan to a Championship side would have been preferable.

It would be fair to say that Tavernier’s performances at Wigan have been disappointing. He lacks the pace and tackling ability necessary to be a successful full back in the Championship. Wing back is a more natural position for him, but his displays in that position were marred by poor distribution. Right midfield in a 4-4-2 formation would probably suit him best, but it is a shape that neither Rosler nor Mackay have favoured. With his exceptional ability to cross the ball and shoot he could have been well employed as an impact substitute and it is hard to understand why Mackay would want to lose someone with such an ability to change the flow of a game.

Rosler was building for the future signing a handful of younger players in the last transfer window. Andy Delort, Adam Forshaw, Emyr Huws, Aaron Taylor- Sinclair and Tavernier were brought in. All were stars at their clubs last season and they are still good players. Sadly they have been dragged into a situation where even experienced and capable pros, such as Ivan Ramis, Shaun Maloney and Leon Barnett, have been struggling to impose themselves on the field of play. Sadly those young players have been seriously mismanaged, first by Rosler now by Mackay.

Tavernier knows what it is like to go on loan. Whilst at Newcastle he was on loan at Gateshead, Carlisle United, Sheffield Wednesday, Milton Keynes Dons, Shrewsbury Town and Rotherham United. However, this is a backwards move for him as he has been trying to establish himself as a Championship-level player. The likelihood is that he will not be returning to Wigan, unless they too are in the Championship next season, heaven forbid!

Supporters of Mackay will say he is doing the right thing in sending Tavernier to Bristol where he will be in a more positive environment away from the relegation pressure at Wigan.

His detractors will say that he is trying to get shut of as many players as he can over the transfer window to make room for his own men. However, he will surely have already found out that players are reluctant to join a team in a relegation mire. He is unable to offer the Premier League style salaries that players like Danny Graham demand, so he will have to find his preferred “hungry UK players” either in the lower leagues in England or from Scotland. The likelihood is that those he might bring in will have no more quality than those already at the club.

Only time will tell if Mackay was right to release Tavernier. But it is a sad state of affairs when a talented young player is sent away on loan less than six months of being signed.

The alarm bells continue to ring at Wigan Athletic.

The sad case of Rosler’s big money signings

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Player profiles and tagged with , , ,

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The rumours are getting stronger. Oriol Riera back to Spain. Andy Delort to France, not to mention the demise of Emyr Huws and Adam Forshaw. What is happening to the players who looked such good signings not so many months ago?

Latics paid a total of over £10m for the four and none of them made the starting lineup at Leeds. Forshaw and Riera made the bench, but did not come into play. Delort and Huws were nowhere.

Critics of Uwe Rosler will say that he paid over the odds for players who were not good enough. But most fans will say the four received a raw deal under Rosler, then even worse up to this point under Malky Mackay. Many still dream of an upfront pairing of Delort and Riera, whilst recognizing the potential of a midfield with the skills of Forshaw and Huws.

Mackay may be doing the right thing in letting the senior professionals shoulder the burden of getting things back on track. However, until Saturday’s result at Leeds it was just not succeeding. His choice of a midfield trio of senior pros – Cowie, McCann and Watson – can be regarded as relying in experience, building up an understanding between the three which will put Latics in good stead in the coming months. In the meantime Forshaw and Huws remain lower down in the pecking order, with Roger Espinoza ahead of them.

Delort and Riera appear peripheral in Mackay’s planning. Mackay’s front two at Leeds were Marc-Antoine Fortune and James McClean, players not known for their finishing. However, McClean was to confound his critics with a well take goal eight minutes from the end. Only time will tell if McClean can learn to play a striking role, quite distinct from being on the left wing. Moreover can he produce a reasonable goalscoring ratio?

The departure of Delort or Riera, or even both, in January remains a distinct possibility, given the impending return of Grant Holt. Holt impressed in his early games on loan at Huddersfield, but the gloss has worn thin over recent weeks and a goal tally of 2 in 15 appearances is hardly impressive. Is the 33 year old Holt likely to more effective than the two Latins? Are we heading back in time to an upfront partnership of Holt and Fortune?

Frankly speaking, Mackay’s team selections have been as frustrating as those of his predecessor. At times it seemed like Rosler had taken the names out of a hat. Mackay’s have been conservative and uninspiring.

On his arrival Mackay said that all players would be given a chance to prove their worth.

However, he has already all but confirmed the departure of Thomas Rogne, despite never seeing him perform for the first team. Rogne’s career has been blighted by injury, but he has been available all season without being called up. He looked a useful player last season – superb in the air and calm under pressure.

Denmark captain, William Kvist, is another who appears to be frozen out by Mackay. There is talk of him moving in the January transfer window. The excellent Ali Al-Habsi has appeared in just one League Cup game, having being briefly loaned out to Brighton. The exciting young ’keeper, Lee Nicholls, has had zero opportunities.

Mackay will reduce the size of his squad in January, trying to raise funds through transfers and reduce the wage bill by shipping higher earners out on loan. One of those could be Andy Delort, who has been linked with a loan move to Charlton. Rosler made a serious error in signing the exciting Frenchman, then playing him as a lone centre forward. Delort’s success last year at Tours came through playing as a twin striker. If Delort does go on loan to Charlton it will be interesting to see how they deploy him. However, the loan could be a good option for Latics, giving the 23 year old more game time in the Championship division. He could come back a better player.

Delort has been quite vocal about his frustrations through comments made to the French press. Riera, on the other hand, has remained positive and stated his desire to adjust to the physicality of the Championship division and to be successful at Wigan. However, if media reports are to be believed there are at least three La Liga teams who would be interested in taking him on loan. But then again what potential value would there be for Latics sending him back to Spain, other than by reducing their wage bill? Better to send him on loan to an English club. Even better from so many fans’ point of view to give him a fair chance at Wigan. Riera has already proven that he can score goals in a lone centre forward role at Osasuna. If he can do it in a competition as good as La Liga, surely he can do the same in the Championship?

Both Forshaw and Huws have grown up in English football. Both have the competitive edge to go with their considerable skills. They have been unfortunate to come into a team struggling to find its form. After being the League 1 player of the year, Forshaw has had to adjust to playing in a higher division. But Huws knows what the Championship is like, his excellent performances having helped Birmingham City stay up last year. The two surely have the necessary technical ability and resilience to become the lynchpins of Latics’ midfield.

Dave Whelan boldly backed Rosler by shelling out good money for four players who are certainly good enough to make their mark in the Championship. A midfield with Forshaw and Huws creating chances for forwards Delort and Riera, is a mouth watering prospect.

What the four need is to be given a run of games in the team. If it happens at all, it will come later rather than sooner.

But has Mackay already made his mind up? How many of the four will be at Wigan a year from now?