A fan’s view of Latics here and now

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Fan Views and tagged with ,

Laticscrest

Being a Wigan Athletic fan has never been plain sailing. There have always been storms that have halted the club’s progress, even if it has so often ridden the waves and kept moving ahead.

Where are Latics here and now?

As fans we all have our own opinions, but there is nobody who is not concerned about the near future for the club.

In order to get a fan view we reached out to bronxbomber, a contributor to the Cockney Latic Forum. He is a true Latic fanatic who has supported his club since their non-league days.

Here is over to him:

There is an old saying “You can’t make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear”.

 The team that lost at Bolton on Saturday is the worst Wigan side I have seen in thirty years. They only bucked up a bit in second half when Maloney came on, and he’s off in a couple of weeks.

 You have to blame DW. Three managerial disasters, and now selling off all the ‘Family Silver’ .

There is no money to spend and he is trying to ship players out, but who is going to take them?

 Apart from McManaman – a decent player but whose temperament is questionable – and Maloney, the rest are dross. A friend of mine told me that he was speaking to a Latics coach last week and he asked him why Delort and Riera weren’t playing . His reply was “Because they are c..p” .

 You can add Cowie , Forshaw, Huws, Tavernier and Holt. The latter is finished now as he is out for nine months. I bet he’s laughing all the way to the bank. £30,000 a week and still has 18 months on his contract. Ben Watson will forever be a Latics Hero, but I’m afraid he is another player who is finished. Only positive from Saturday is that it showed Al Habsi is a better keeper than Scott Carson. Man of the Match. Without him it could have been 6….

 I know my opinions probably differ from a lot of people but I have watched Latics from the non- league days. I see where we have come from and have watched players who had a passion for the club, sadly lacking in this day and age. But I suppose this can be said for most of today’s players. It’s just a job, not like in the past when players would have played for nothing and practically did.

I think opinion is divided on MM amongst the fans. In my opinion he was the wrong man for the job. He was out of work and a bit of a “no no” as to his past reputation. But let’s face it he was cheap which appears to be the main requisite on how Dave Whelan conducts his business.

 Be it commercial or football the last three appointments have been disasters in managerial terms. Look where Derby are now with McClaren. It is muted that he applied for the manager’s job, but DW chose Coyle. I wonder why?

 Even though I think MM was the wrong choice, he was left with players who were not up to Championship standard, for whom Rosler forked out all the money we got from selling off the ‘Family Silver’, around £12 million. Huws, Tavernier, Taylor, Forshaw, Cowie, Delort, Riera. They aren’t as good as the players we already had at the club and that’s not saying much. Holt a catastrophe buy and now out for nine months, so we won’t see him again. Where are Kvist and Rogne?

 I can’t see there being any money to spend in January so it will have to be loan players and that will mean shipping people out. Roger has gone. Maloney, our only decent player, is rumoured to be on his way out too.

 So who do we get in?

 Let’s face it Wigan is the last resort for players. “If we can’t get fixed up with any other club then we will go to Wigan”.  I hear fans saying “Yeah but players want to be playing” . To most players, playing football is a job. How many ex-players do you hear saying “I never go to games.”

 It’s a job …   I think a lot of the players at Wigan have this attitude. If they got paid on performance ratings, as in the real world with individual output targets, they would buck up.

At the moment they appear to be going through the motions.

 

 

Selling off the crown jewels – but who cares?

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Reflections and tagged with , , , , ,
Photo courtesy of royal.gov.uk

Photo courtesy of royal.gov.uk

The exodus has all but begun. What seemed almost inconceivable just a few months ago is well underway. The crown jewels are about to be sold, but nobody seems to care.

Shaun Maloney will surely depart over the coming weeks. The media tell us that there are at least four clubs interested in signing him and that Latics are asking for a fee of £1.5m, which they are unlikely to get unless they can instigate a bidding war. It is said that Leicester City have already offered £750,000.

Maloney is an icon at Wigan, largely through his marvelous performances in the latter part of the 2012-13 season and his role as an FA Cup winner. He was the playmaker, the one who would make himself available to receive a pass, able to slot through incisive balls to his forwards. He was excellent on set pieces and would use his dribbling skills to great effect.

However, through reasons of injury or illness or lack of form, the Scot has started in just nine league matches this season. He has starred for his country, showing those kinds of attributes. But for Latics he has not consistently shown that keenness to receive the ball and make things happen. He did those things in Mackay’s first game at home to Middlesbrough, scoring a spectacular free kick and going so close with a previous effort. But since then he has not reproduced such form.

His fans would say that he remains the best midfield player at the club, but is playing in a team that does not know how to play good football. Too often his fellow midfield players will pass the ball behind for the defence to hoof up front. The case comes to mind of Dutch international midfielder Denny Landzaat who got himself into hot water during the Steve Bruce era. Landzaat’s performances at Wigan had been disappointing. When asked about his form by the Dutch media he told them that most of the time the ball from defence went over his head, not to his feet. Landzaat was undoubtedly a skillful player, but he just did not fit in to the Bruce style of play, so he moved on.

At 31 years of age, Maloney will be keen to safeguard his future. Despite having been dogged by injury he has shown that he has the quality to be a better than average player at Premier League level.

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Maloney was a key cog in the machine that played the best football in Wigan Athletic’s history. However, under the Mackay regime he just does not fit.

Most fans will accept the need for Maloney to move, but the case of Oriel Riera is something different. The latest reports suggest that he is about to join Deportivo La Coruña on loan until the end of the season. Promoted last season from the segunda division they are in 16th place in the primera division of La Liga.

Riera’s case contrasts with that of Maloney. The Scot is about to move to a higher league after an unsuccessful spell in a lower one. The Spaniard is about to do the reverse.

Following the recent news of Grant Holt’s long term injury, many of us expected Riera to stay, but it appears that negotiations for his release have been going on for some time. Mackay and his coaching staff have clearly written off the Spaniard and it looks like he will not be coming back after his loan.

Critics will say that Riera lacks the physicality to be successful as a central striker in the Championship. At times he has been anonymous on the field of play, not being able to stamp his mark on the game.

However, most fans will say that he has never been given a fair chance. Riera came to Wigan three years too late. He would have most likely thrived playing in Roberto Martinez’s team. However, the role of the lone centre forward this season has been largely taken up in trying to make something of the long hooves launched by goalkeeper and defenders. One wonders if even the likes of Diego Costa or Robin Van Persie could have done any better receiving that kind of service.

Rather than include Riera in the starting lineup Mackay has resorted either to the goal-shy Marc-Antoine Fortune or James McClean, a left winger playing out of position. The result has been that Latics have only scored one goal from open play since the manager’s arrival.

The club will be keen to bring in funds gathered from Maloney’s transfer and Riera’s loan deal. Andy Delort will surely be among the next to go. The transfer fees paid for Riera and Delort together amounted to around £5m, big money for Latics these days. They will be keen to cut their losses. Further economies will be made shortly when Roger Espinoza will be taken off the wage bill, sadly on his way back to Kansas after a frustrating time at Wigan.

The need for a physically uncompromising defender has been standing out over the course of the season. Media reports suggest that Mackay is about to sign a player who fits the bill. Liam Ridgewell went to Portland Timbers in the MLS in June after being released by West Bromwich Albion. He is an experienced Premier League defender, who can play at centre half or left back.

However, in a time when the club are under attack from the national media they are about to make themselves vulnerable again. Moreover fans have become disillusioned by the attitudes of players who earn more in a couple of weeks than most of them do in a year. Ridgewell will come with the baggage of his antics of a couple of years ago which were reported on the national media. Such behaviour will hardly endear him to the fans at Wigan.

These are trying times for Wigan Athletic supporters. The club seems to have gone into free-fall and there is little light at the end of the tunnel. Fans have grown so disillusioned with the lack of performance of the players that most no longer care about who gets sold off in the transfer window.

There is a general malaise that is dragging the club down. Players who have proved themselves in the past have been pulled down into the mire.

The likelihood is that the players leaving during Mackay’s fire sale will be successful at their new clubs.

The crown jewels of old will most likely be sold off – but what will take their place?

Holt injury opens door for Riera

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Other and tagged with ,
Grant Holt has signed for Wolves on a short term loan.
Oriol Riera

Previous articles on Oriol Riera:

It’s time for Riera

An Osasuna fan’s view of Oriol Riera

It looked distinctly possible that Oriol Riera might go back to Spain within the month of January. His ex-manager from his time at Cordoba, Lucas Alvarez, is in charge at Levante and reportedly wants Riera on loan. Levante are currently in 15th place in La Liga, having scored just 12 goals in their 16 matches.

The Valencia club have done business with Latics before, Arouna Kone arriving at Wigan in August 2012 for a fee of €3.5m. Allowing Riera to go on loan would reduce Latics’ wage bill, with the possibility of a permanent deal to follow.

However, the cruciate knee ligament injury suffered by Grant Holt could force Malky Mackay’s hand into retaining Riera.

Mackay’s credibility as Latics manager continues to plummet. His record in seven games in charge reads W1 D1 L5. The arrival of a new manager so often coincides with an immediate upturn in results, but it has not been the case for Mackay at Wigan. Uwe Rosler was dismissed because of a run of bad results, but in his last seven games in charge he had a record of W1 D4 L2.

Mackay’s credibility has been undermined in the eyes of fans by his team selections. Marc-Antoine Fortune has many attributes, not least his ability to salvage something out of long punts from the defence. However, he has scored only 5 goals in 53 appearances for the club. James McClean too has attributes – his enthusiasm is important in a struggling team and his direct running can trouble opposition defences. But McClean is essentially a winger, not a lone centre forward in a 4-3-3 formation or a twin striker in 3-5-2.

Fortune and McClean make a hardworking front two, but both lack the instinct to make the incisive runs needed to split opposing defences. Neither are they the type to be in the right place to put away the tap-ins.

Mackay went some way to appeasing fan pressure by switching to a 3-5-2 formation with twin strikers.

Would he even consider using Riera and Andy Delort as an upfront partnership? Or could it be that one or both will have departed the club by the end of the month?

Of the two, Riera is the more experienced and has proved himself in the Primera Division of Spain. Delort is a raw diamond from Ligue 2 of France.

Has Mackay already passed judgement on the two? Are they still in his plans?

 

 

 

 

Climbing back up with experience – Latics are ready for the Owls

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

With renewed confidence following a hard fought victory at Leeds on Boxing Day, Wigan Athletic face Sheffield Wednesday at the DW tomorrow night. A win for Latics would see them climb out of the relegation zone.

In an attempt to draw in more support the club are offering ground admission at £10. Not surprisingly after so many poor performances at home this season’s average attendance stands at 12,518. It is down 18% from last season’s average of 15,176.

Interestingly the DW Stadium was the most popular venue for away supporters in the Championship last season, with an average of 1,968 per game. If this had been a weekend game we could have expected a significant number of away supporters making the journey across the Pennines. However, with a 7:45 pm start on a Tuesday evening in cold weather it is going to take the most loyal of Owls’ fans to make the journey.

Malky Mackay will continue to rely mainly on his experienced players for this match. Latics have the second oldest squad in the division, although Mackay fielded a couple of younger players against Leeds in Rob Kiernan and James Tavernier, both 23 years of age. He will surely stick by the 3-5-2 system that worked well at Leeds, giving wing backs Tavernier and Andrew Taylor the opportunity to move forward to support the attack. Tavernier has the ability to launch superb crosses and it will be interesting to see if the probable strike force of Marc-Antoine Fortune and James McClean can show the heading ability needed to capitalize on his deliveries. Oriol Riera would surely thrive on such service should he come on the field at some stage.

Mackay will be tempted to name an unchanged lineup, providing there are no fitness issues among those players. At Leeds he had a bench that would be the envy of many clubs – Ali Al Habsi, Emmerson Boyce, Roger Espinoza, Adam Forshaw, Shaun Maloney, Callum McManaman and Oriol Riera. However, he will be keen to keep a settled lineup, particularly on the centre of defence where a new trio of James Perch, Ivan Ramis and Rob Kiernan did well at Leeds.

It is only four weeks since Latics were defeated at Hillsborough in a mediocre match. That day the giant centre forward Atdhe Nuhiu gave Latics’ central defence a torrid time. Ivan Ramis had a rare off-day and had to be substituted at half time. Tomorrow Nuhiu will find it harder, facing a backline of three central defenders, with Ramis keen to atone for his display that day.

Since then Wednesday won 2-1 at Blackburn, lost 0-1 at home to Wolves and 4-0 at Fulham, but beat Blackpool 1-0 at home on Boxing Day. They lie in 13th place, 11 points above Wigan. It will be the fourth time the two clubs have met in a league game in the 2014 calendar year.

If Latics are to climb the table they need to be able to beat sides like Sheffield Wednesday. It could be a tight encounter tomorrow night at the DW Stadium.

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?