Tag Archives: Dave Whelan

Whelan helps Latics back on track – Wigan Athletic 0 Nottingham Forest 0

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Match Reports and tagged with , , ,
Dave Whelan's backing of his manager can help Latics turn the corner.

Dave Whelan’s backing of his manager can help Latics turn the corner.

“I was looking for a response and a reaction and I think the players delivered that. I am also happy with the response from the supporters and the chairman. He came into the dressing room before the game and was very positive and reassuring to me and the players.” The words of Uwe Rosler following last night’s game.

The German was right – Latics looked a different team than they have been of late. Although the result places them 20th in the Championship table, the fighting spirit has returned which, in time, will propel them back up.

The match programme notes included a comment from Rosler “Wigan Athletic is a club that thrives in moments of adversity – we have shown it for years – so let’s all go and put a real Wigan Athletic performance in tonight, on and off the pitch. “ The performance showed that kind of spirit.

Rosler made four changes from the team that played at Bournemouth, switching to a 4-3-3 formation. William Kvist came into midfield to join Don Cowie and Emyr Huws, with Adam Forshaw on the bench. Callum McManaman, Andy Delort and James McClean were brought in upfront. Emmerson Boyce and Ivan Ramis played at centre back with Rob Kiernan omitted.

McManaman looked dangerous early on, giving Eric Lichaj a hard time. However, in the 11th minute a wild shot from the American found Michail Antonio in front of the goal, some four yards out, but somehow he blazed his shot high over the bar. However, Latics were to settle into their rhythm, their midfield dominating possession and there were some promising passing movements. However, the nearest Wigan came to scoring was a spectacular volley from James McClean which went over the bar.

Boyce went off injured during the half time break and was replaced by Leon Barnett. The second half continued in the same vein. Shaun Maloney replaced McManaman after 58 minutes. McClean’s energy and drive had added life to Wigan’s play and on the hour mark through his hard running and persistence he found a way through Forest’s well organised defence. However, the ball fell to his weaker right foot and he kicked the ball wide. It was to turn out to be the only clear-cut chance for Latics.

Rosler made an attacking move after 73 minutes, bringing on forward Oriel Riera for midfielder Cowie. Forest had started to look threatening. Britt Assombalonga forced Scott Carson to a good save and Henri Lansbury drove just wide in the final quarter of an hour.

Despite being a goalless draw, punctuated by 38 fouls (19 from each side), it had been an entertaining game. Either team could have won it. Both teams had two shots on target, Forest from 9 goal attempts. Latics from 13. Wigan had 56% of the possession.

The Good

The tale of Dave Whelan’s eventful visit to the dressing room in the early days of Paul Jewell’s reign is etched in the minds of Latics supporters. Jewell was going through a hard time as a young manager, dealing with too many players who were not supporting him. The story goes that Whelan let the players know in no uncertain terms that the manager was staying and that they could leave if they were not happy with that. It was to ultimately lead to Jewell taking Latics to the Premier League and the League Cup final.

Whelan’s intervention this time around might well have sent a similar message. The result was clear to see – a team putting in a real Wigan Athletic performance. Rosler will be buoyed by not only the chairman’s support, but by that of the crowd. The fans present last night gave the team great support and the chanting of Rosler’s name at the end will surely have lifted the manager’s spirits.

The midfield was a revelation in comparison with previous matches. Kvist was a rock in front of the back four and the unsung Cowie had his best game so far, with an all action display. Huws continues to impress. They provided the link between defence and attack that had been too often absent in recent games.

The protection from midfield surely helped the defence which looked solid. Boyce and Ramis were a solid pairing in the first half and Barnett’s forceful play added another dimension in the second. He surely deserves a regular place. The full backs looked comfortable.

McClean was a livewire throughout, bristling with commitment. His unique blend of raw energy and willingness to run at the opposition defence added an extra dimension to Wigan’s play. McManaman faded after a bright start. Delort battled hard and put in some nice touches, although he was once again starved of goal scoring opportunities.

The Bad

Despite their effort and good approach play Latics rarely troubled the Forest keeper. In the long run they will surely be depending on the likes of Forshaw and Maloney to provide the type of incisive passing that can unlock opposing defences.

Forshaw has still not reached peak fitness and stayed on the bench for this game. Sadly Maloney looked a shadow of his former self.

Latics continue to pose little threat from set pieces. It seems to be a lottery who takes the free kicks and corners.

Player Ratings

Scott Carson: 7 – solid and reliable. With more players forward his long kicks were more effective.

James Perch: 7 – solid and hard working.

Emmerson Boyce: 7 – solid until he went off injured after 45 minutes.

Ivan Ramis: 7.5 – excellent throughout.

Andrew Taylor: 7 – solid and hard working.

William Kvist: 7.5 – strong in the tackle and rarely wasted the ball. Conceded five fouls but drew three.

Don Cowie: 7.5 – his best game for Latics so far. Full of commitment and running.

Emyr Huws: 7 – faded at times, but at 19 years of age looks an outstanding prospect. Tough in the tackle with good distribution.

Callum McManaman: 6.5 – faded after a lively start. Went off after 58 minutes.

Andy Delort: 6.5 – full of effort and showed flashes of skill. Frustrating when committing unnecessary fouls. Gave away six in total with just one in his favour.

James McClean: 8 – surely his best performance in a Wigan shirt.

Substitutes:

Leon Barnett: 7 – full of power and authority in defence.

Shaun Maloney: – tried hard, but could not impose his mark on the game.

Oriel Riera: – came on after 73 minutes.

 


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Aiming for a Category 1 Academy

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Specials and tagged with , , , ,

We had been waiting so long with bated breath for news about the exciting training complex project. Latics had bought the Charnock Richard Golf Course last year, but no news had been forthcoming. Then this week the club confirmed that the Chorley Borough Planning Committee had given its approval.

Chief Executive Jonathan Jackson commented “To compete in the highest levels of English football, Wigan Athletic needs facilities that are comparable with other clubs in the Premier League and Sky Bet Championship. The Charnock Richard proposal will allow us to attract players of all ages and also develop future professionals.”

The Wigan Athletic development squad won 4-3 at home last week, but it could hardly be called a monumental result. The match was against Wrexham, a club that finished 17th in the Conference Premier League last year. In contrast Blackburn Rovers’ last development team game was at Aston Villa.

There are seven Championship clubs who compete in the Under 21 Professional Development League 1, including local rivals Blackburn Rovers and Bolton Wanderers. League 1 is only for clubs who have an academy of Category 1 status. It is divided into two divisions, the upper division being known as the Under 21 Barclays Premier League for sponsorship reasons. There are currently 12 clubs in each division .

Another nine Sky Bet Championship clubs play in the Under 21 Professional Development League 2, which also includes six clubs from Skybet League 1. League 2 is for clubs with Category 2 status academies. There are 19 clubs competing this season. Both of the Under 21 Professional Development Leagues are adminstered by the Premier League.

Wigan Athletic’s development squad plays in the Central League, currently called the Final Third Development League. The Central League started in 1911 as a mix of first teams and reserve teams from the big clubs. When the Football League expanded in 1921, all the first teams became founder members of the Third Division (North). It was to become the main reserve league for the fully professional clubs from the north and midlands. Liverpool hold the record for winning the Central League with 16 titles, followed by Manchester United with 10.

In 2006 the Premier Reserve League was formed and the Central League took a big hit. With the formation of the Professional Development League in 2012 it lost even more clubs. What remains now is 23 clubs divided into two divisions. Latics play in the West Division.

The current reality for Wigan Athletic is that the Central League cannot meet their needs for immersing young players into the right kind of environment. The gap between the Central League and the Championship division is huge.

The current Wigan Athletic squad contains two fine young players who came up through the ranks. Lee Nicholls and Callum McManaman played in the Premier Reserve League against quality opposition. The experience prepared them well for Latics’ senior squad and loan spells with Football League clubs. McManaman is an outstanding prospect and although Nicholls currently lags behind, he has huge potential.

In the club’s official communique Jonathan Jackson commented: “To compete in the highest levels of English football, Wigan Athletic needs facilities that are comparable with other clubs in the Premier League and Sky Bet Championship. The Charnock Richard proposal will allow us to attract players of all ages and also develop future professionals.”

The club expects the training ground to be in operation by August 2016. Were that to become a reality they would then need to apply for Category 1 status. That would mean employing at least 18 full time staff and an operational budget of at least £2.5m. Category 1 status also means more contact time with young players, which includes making arrangements for schooling.

Latics’ aim is to gain Category 1 status as soon as possible. However, it is clearly going to take some time. In the meantime they run the risk of youth prospects being poached by the big clubs for minimal reward. Moreover the club’s under 21 and under 18 teams will continue to play in competitions that are mediocre.

The main priority for Latics this season is promotion to the Premier League. However, in terms of long term sustainability the club needs to produce young players who can graduate to senior level. The cynics say that Dave Whelan should have made this investment years ago. His supporters would respond that the Chairman’s priority was to keep the club in the Premier League. A hugely beefed-up Academy scheme was not in his immediate thinking.

The Academy project is an indication that Latics are trying to secure long-term viability as a club in the upper echelons of English football. It is an investment of appreciable cost, both in the purchase of new facilities and the future staffing and general running costs of a large youth training facility.

In the meantime, given the quality of opposition offered in the Central League, they will continue to use the loan scheme as a way of preparing their best young players for the senior squad.

 

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FFP and Latics – should Whelan splash the cash?

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Specials and tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , ,

2012-moneyball

Bournemouth has never had a team playing in the top tier of English football. They entered the Football League in 1923 and AFC Bournemouth play in a stadium that holds 11,700. They had 91% occupancy last season when they challenged for a playoff place, eventually finishing 10th in the Championship.

Owned by Maxim Demin, a Russian petrochemicals billionaire, they would like to see the Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules changed. They claim that less than half of the clubs playing in the Championship now were present when current FFP regulations were agreed. In May their chairman, Jeremy Mostyn, said that “What we have is an ambitious owner who has a desire to take this club as far forward as he possibly can…….but what is wrong with having an owner who is determined to put his own money into a football club and take it as far as he can?”

Demin wants to see his club in the Premier League. In gaining promotion from League 1 in 2012-13 they lost £15.3m. He is clearly prepared to put in the funds to launch them up another division.

Wigan Athletic fans know what it is like to have an owner who wanted to get his club into the Premier League. It cost Dave Whelan an awful lot of money not just to get Latics into the elite circles, but also to keep them there. If FFP had existed a decade ago it is highly unlikely that Wigan Athletic would have been able to climb up to the Premier League.

In their final two seasons in the Premier League Latics were among a small minority of clubs that actually made a profit. After years of Whelan pumping money into the club it was starting to look like it could become self-sufficient. But relegation meant that the parameters changed – breaking even in the Championship was to be a very different proposition to doing the same in the Premier League.

Last season Latics were due to receive £23m in parachute payments from the Premier League. With an historic Europa League campaign coming up the club decided to largely invest the parachute payments into maintaining a large squad. It is believed that the club had previously written into players’ contracts that their salaries would drop if they were to be relegated from the Premier League. Moreover a number of players left the club, several at the ends of their contracts, others for significant transfer fees.

The proceeds from the sales of Arouna Kone and James McCarthy to Everton probably amounted to around £18m, although the payments were to be staggered over a time period. Most fans expected a sizeable chunk of that money to be reinvested in signing players who could help get the club back into the Premier League. Owen Coyle came in and did a remarkable job in bringing in 10 new players in the space of a couple of months, some having been at the ends of their contracts, some loan signings and others for what appeared to be bargain prices.

With hindsight Coyle was to make one major blunder, paying around £2m for the 32 year old Grant Holt and giving him a 3 year contract. At the time Holt looked like a good signing, given his proven goal scoring record, although the length of the contract raised eyebrows at the time. However, Coyle paid modest fees to acquire Leon Barnett, Scott Carson and James Perch, who have proved to be good signings. He paid a little more to sign James McClean, who took a drop in pay to join Latics from Sunderland. Although the Irishman remains enigmatic he might well become a key player in the future. Coyle’s acquisition of Chris McCann, who had reached the end of his contract at Burnley, was by no means lauded at the time, but the Irishman was to prove a quality signing. Seven of Coyle’s signings remain Latics players, although Juan Carlos Garcia has gone to Tenerife on loan.

The sum total of the transfer fees paid by Coyle would approximate to that received through the sale of Kone. It is assumed that the sum roughly equivalent to that due to be received through McCarthy’s transfer will be allocated towards the development of the new training and youth development facility at Charnock Richard.

Latics actually performed relatively well last season in using their parachute payments to assemble a squad good enough to reach 5th place in the Championship. In the previous season the clubs who came down from the Premier League – Blackburn, Bolton and Wolves – finished in 13th, 16th and 18th positions, despite parachute payments of £16m.

With the parachute payment and funds gained from the Europa League campaign, together with prudent financial management, it is likely that Wigan Athletic at least broke even financially last season. The projected cost of the Charnock Richard facility has not been announced by the club, although Latics clearly made a bargain in buying the site, which was auctioned at a guide price of £650,000.

The accounts will make interesting reading when they are announced in a few months’ time.

Under the current financial regime at the club, Wigan Athletic are highly unlikely to incur penalties under FFP rules. The challenge is whether they can secure promotion back to the Premier League against clubs who are spending millions on new players. Fulham’s investment of £13m on Ross McCormack was staggering, especially for a player who has never played in the Premier League. Last season both Leicester City and Queens Park Rangers flouted FFP rules in gaining promotion. The London team is reported to have had a budget of £70m last year, exceeding that of Atletico Madrid, La Liga winners and Champions League finalists. They lost £23.4m over the season.

The rules for FFP for the Championship division differ from those of the Premier League and Leagues 1 and 2. For the 2013-14 season clubs were required to restrict any losses to £3m. However, it gave the owner of the club the option of converting up to £5m of any loss into equity, putting in cash to buy shares in the club. It cannot be done by borrowing money. However, if these were to be met and the losses did not exceed £8m there would be no penalty.

Clubs are required to submit their accounts for the 2013-14 season on December 1st. Any club that exceeds the limit will have a transfer embargo imposed until it turns itself around to reach FFP rules.

One club that appears certain to have a transfer embargo placed on it in January is Blackburn Rovers. They lost an incredible £36m in the 2013-14 season, wages alone accounting for 115% of revenue. The transfer of Jordan Rhodes for big money would help them to balance their books for the 2014-2015 season, but they face at least a year of transfer embargoes until the accounts are once more submitted in December 2015.

The Football League has a “Fair Play” tax in the case of clubs who overspend, but are promoted to the Premier League. The tax is on a sliding scale, but QPR are due to pay over £17m on their overspending last year. The Championship clubs voted overwhelmingly to impose the Fair Play tax, but the implementation of the scheme relied on the support of the Premier League, which has not materialized. At this stage it looks like QPR have got away with it, but it remains to be seen what will happen if they get relegated and return to the Championship.

Championship clubs continue to overspend in their ambitions to reach the Premier League, not only in transfer fees, but also in salaries. In the 2012-13 season only five clubs in the Championship made a profit. Leicester City lost £34m that season and if FFP rules had been in effect there is no way they would have avoided a transfer embargo, making it unlikely they would have been able to build up a squad strong enough for promotion the following season. It will be interesting to see if clubs fared any better last season, knowing that FFP was coming into effect.

Almost half of the clubs in the Championship are receiving parachute payments. This gives them a considerable financial advantage over the others who receive a “solidarity payment“of £2.3 million from the Premier League, one tenth of that of a club in its first year of parachute payments. The imbalance among the clubs has led to suggestions that clubs with parachute payments should have TV money withheld and that a salary cap be introduced for clubs.

Because of the financial support through the second parachute payment now is the time for Latics to really push for promotion. Over the next two years the payments will decrease and after that Latics would receive only the meagre consolidation payment that teams like Bournemouth are receiving. However, they are now competing against clubs who have just come down with bigger parachute payments plus other clubs who do not seem to be afraid to splash money on transfers despite FFP.

Latics desperately need another striker who can win matches by scoring goals. The question is how far is Whelan willing to go in the bidding wars that start up as the transfer window deadline day draws closer? Brentford sources are suggesting that Latics are going to have to pay more for Adam Forshaw than we previously thought. Moreover a good central striker is going to cost money.

Whelan will want to squeeze as much as he can out of any deal for James McArthur in order to finance the other two purchases. The hold-up in the Forshaw transfer might well be because Latics need to get the McArthur deal finalized first. There has been no news about other Latics players being sought by other clubs, but it remains a possibility at this late stage.

Whelan, Jonathan Jackson and Uwe Rosler deserve credit for the way the club is being run on a sound financial basis. Looking at the plight of near neighbours Bolton and Blackburn highlights the fact. Latics are likely to be one of the leaders in the division in terms of meeting FFP conditions.

However, whether Whelan will allow potential outgoings on transfers to exceed the incomings is a moot point. If he does not do so it will almost certainly jeopardise Latics’ chances of going up this year.

Dave Whelan is first and foremost a businessman. He will have some key business decisions to make over the next few days.

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Do Latics really need Adam Forshaw?

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Reflections and tagged with , , , , , , , ,

Forshaw

Rarely can a football club get as inflamed as Brentford have done these past few days. Wigan Athletic have made bids for Adam Forshaw that Brentford just don’t seem to appreciate.

“Warburton fumes as Brentford reject second ‘unacceptable’ bid from Wigan for Forshaw” was the headline in the London 24 newspaper a couple of days ago. So what is it about Latics’ bid for the ex-Everton youth player that has touched a raw nerve at the west London club?

Forshaw is clearly a key player for the Bees in their attempts to hold their own in a higher division. A 22 year old midfield player with a degree of elegance and skill, he was named League 1 Player of the Season. With Chris McCann and Ben Watson recovering from major injuries it is going to take a matter of months before they will be fit enough to challenge for a first team place again. Moreover Shaun Maloney did not play one minute in the pre-season matches. Rosler clearly likes to have a balance of experienced and young players in his squad and would see Forshaw as a good long-term investment for the club, given his age.

Manager Mark Warburton is quoted as saying “A bid is only a bid when it’s realistic. When it comes in and unsettles a player – that’s unacceptable. There’s been a second bid which is totally unacceptable.” He left Forshaw out of a pre-season friendly at the weekend against Crystal Palace because “the bid was unsettling for the player” and “he needed to go away for a couple of days to get his head straight.”

Wigan Athletic fans know all about their top players being courted by bigger clubs who do not hide their interest in the player they seek. It does not seem so long ago that Latics were receiving derisory bids for Victor Moses, but they hung in there until Chelsea eventually came in with a more realistic figure. A similar case happened with Charles N’Zogbia, who was certainly unsettled by interest from other clubs, but eventually stayed for another year and helped keep the club in the Premier League.

In effect all clubs outside the elite handful that dominate the Premier League are selling clubs. It is unsettling for a player when a bigger club takes interest in him because he wants to improve himself professionally and big clubs pay bigger salaries.

Being Player of the Year in League 1 is a great achievement for Forshaw, but there is no guarantee that he can perform to the same level in the Championship or the Premier League. Latics will be loath to pay out a big transfer fee for a player that is of yet unproven in their tier. Reports suggest that Everton will receive a sizeable chunk of the transfer fee if Forshaw does leave, having built an agreement into the deal they made with Brentford. It is rumoured that Brentford want £6m for the player, but Wigan’s first bid was £1.5m. Somewhere between the two figures would apppear realistic, but it is doubtful that Latics would stretch that far for a midfield player, given the need to strengthen other areas in the squad.

Clearly much of the Brentford venom has been aimed at Dave Whelan. He was the one who snatched Uwe Rosler from them at a time when they were on a high, with the announcement of a new stadium coming through. This time it is the Wigan chairman again, who in their eyes is trying to poach away their brightest young player without adequate compensation. Whether it is Whelan, Rosler, Jonathan Jackson or whoever else at the club who has been making the bids is academic. In the real world opening bids tend to start on the low side and gradually build up until a consensus is reached. Whelan might be a tough negotiator, but other labels currently being attached to him are clearly unfair.

But then again, do Latics really need Forshaw?

Much depends on the injury situation. Rosler tends to play with three box-to-box midfielders. Don Cowie has been brought in from Cardiff and can be expected to adopt the role previously held by Ben Watson, as an anchorman sitting in front of the back four. James McArthur is an automatic choice. In pre-season Rosler played new signing James Tavernier in midfield and his shooting, his quality crossing of the ball and ability at set pieces makes him an attractive proposition in the long term. However, Tavernier arrived at the club as a full back and only time will tell if he will develop into a quality midfielder. Should Tavernier not become a regular in midfield, Roger Espinoza is the obvious candidate for that third position. Rosler also has a revived Fraser Fyvie, loan signing Emyr Huws and under 21 player Tim Chow as possibilities in midfield.

The media has also reported Latics’ interest in Chelsea’s George Saville, who was on loan at Brentford last season. Were they to sign both Saville and Forshaw it would be interesting to see how Brentford reacted. Many Latics fans consider that Warburton over reacted to the bid for Forshaw, when it is not unusual for a manager to go back to his previous club for a player. They will also cite Whelan’s oft stated view that should any player want to move on to higher things from Wigan, he would not stand in his way, providing the price were right.

Two questions remain. Would Latics be willing to pay £3m-£4m for an extra midfield player and one who has not proved himself at Championship level? Is Rosler seeking more midfield cover because one of his current squad might be leaving?

If there is a number one priority for adding to the squad it surely lies in the acquisition of another central striker. Would those funds be better used in that area rather than spending it on Forshaw?

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It’s Coyle or McClaren for Wigan

Posted by JJ (Tony) in News, Other and tagged with , ,
Roberto-Martinez-Dave-Whelan-Wigan-1024_2943161

Coyle or McClaren to replace Martinez? The two main candidates are as different as chalk and cheese.

“I have tried to stay away from managers who are in work at the moment because there is a fee involved with those.”

So said Dave Whelan, according to a report from a national newspaper on Wednesday.

It seemed a strange thing to say, but maybe the comment was taken out of context.

True that having to haggle with another club about compensation could delay the appointment of a manager. True that haste is a necessity with Wigan needing to get things moving again, with so many players leaving the club. But then again, is Whelan seriously baulking at paying maybe a couple of million to get the right man?

If this is the case it rules out young, exciting prospects such as Karl Robinson and Gus Poyet, together with alternative candidates like Rene Meulensteen if he remains under contract. Given reports saying that Whelan will be naming the manager before the end of the week, the field now seems to have to narrowed down considerably.

It is probably for such reasons that the bookmakers currently rank Owen Coyle and Steve McClaren as the prime candidates. Both are experienced managers who can do a good job, given the right resources and the backing of the chairman. However, like any other experienced football manager, each has has ups and downs in his career.

Appointing an ex-Bolton manager, known for his “uber confidence”, might not go down well with some Latics supporters. Owen Coyle was released by Bolton in October 2012, after a roller-coaster ride with them. He had joined Bolton in controversial circumstances, leaving Burnley mid-way through the 2009-2010 season.

After doing a good job at St Johnstone, helping them reach the Scottish Cup final, Coyle had taken Burnley back into the Premier League. Burnley were playing some exciting football and it looked as though they would finish around mid-table. Sadly Coyle’s untimely exit led them to be relegated that same season.

When Coyle arrived at Bolton in January 2010 they were in relegation trouble, but he managed to get them into 14th place by the end of the season. The 2010-2011 season saw Bolton rise up the Premier League, seemingly challenging for a Europa League place in the early  months. It was even said that his team were playing good football, despite the legacy of the previous regimes of such as Sam Allardyce and Gary Megson. However, there were those who could provide statistics to suggest that this was not the case.

Ironically it was Coyle’s success in helping his club reach the FA Cup semi final that was to lead to his eventual demise at the club. After losing 5-0 to Stoke at Wembley in April 2011 results took a steep downturn, Bolton once again finishing in 14th place, despite their early season promise. The poor form continued in the 2011-12 season, leading to them being relegated. It had been a very difficult time for the club, with Fabrice Muamba suffering a heart attack during a match in March 2012.

Despite relegation, Coyle continued as manager until October 2012. Around the time of his departure from Bolton a Guardian article, relating to Coyle’s tenure there,  quoted a fan as saying “(His)signings haven’t worked out, some of his team selections are hard to understand and he often sends out sides that are set up to attack rather than stop the opposition playing, but if you had to name one principal failing it is that he doesn’t appear to know how to set up a defence or stop leaking goals.”

While Owen Coyle might be regarded as a manager who espouses attacking football, Steve McClaren’s approach has tended to be more conservative, based on solid defence. After being Alex Ferguson’s assistant at Old Trafford for two years, McClaren did a wonderful job as Middlesbrough manager from 2001-2006, winning the League Cup, reaching the UEFA Cup final and two FA Cup semi finals.

Despite his considerable success at the north east club, McClaren was never well loved there. A WSC article from September 2006 entitled  “The anonymous man” provides a fascinating insight into the connection between the man, the club and its supporters.

McClaren took over as England manager in August 2006. It turned out to be a poisoned chalice. He was mercilessly attacked by the public and the media after poor England performances, including the failure to qualify for Euro 2008. He lasted 16 months in the position.

McClaren took over as manager ofl Dutch club FC Twente in June 2008. FC Twente was based in Entschede, a town of around 150,000 in population. They had never won the Dutch league since their formation in 1965. In his first season they finished second in the Eredivisie and progressed to the latter rounds of the UEFA Cup. In the following 2009-2010 season they won 16 of their 17 home games and lost only two away. They were to win the Eredivisie, finishing a point ahead of Dutch giants, Ajax Amsterdam.

McClaren then went on to brief spells at Wolfsburg and Nottingham Forest before returning to Twente in January 2012. However, despite a good start things did not work out as well second time around and McClaren left in February 2013.

Both Owen Coyle and Steve McClaren are experienced and accomplished managers. Their approaches are contrasting.

Following four years of shaky defences under Roberto Martinez, Dave Whelan might look towards McClaren to provide the kind of defensive stability required to get Latics out of the Championship Division. On the other hand he might stick his neck out and go for the more effervescent Coyle.

Coyle and McClaren are as different as chalk and cheese, not just in personality but in footballing terms.

Only time will tell if Whelan makes the right decision in finding the right kind of personality and football manager to guide Wigan Athletic back into the Premier League.

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