Tag Archives: Forshaw

Off to Blackburn in a mood of buoyant optimism

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

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It seems a long time has passed since the last away game. In fact it was a month ago when Latics went to Charlton in an air of uncertainty following a League Cup exit to Burton Albion. Uwe Rosler’s honeymoon period as manager reached its end when Charlton snatched the points with a freaky last minute goal.

In contrast Latics go to Blackburn tomorrow in a mood of buoyant optimism. Ewood Park has rarely been a happy hunting ground for Latics and there might well be another adverse result, but fans are now more confident about what lies beyond. As a result of recent transfer activity Rosler has built a formidable squad, with quality players competing for places in every position.

One of the questions fans are now asking is whether Rosler will revert to his squad rotation mode after keeping a consistent starting lineup in the last three matches. Moreover will he stick with that same 3-5-2 formation that has produced improved results? Will he bring in his new signings: Andy Delort, Andy Forshaw and William Kvist?

Squad rotation is a prickly issue with many supporters. Those opposed to it will cite the example of Burnley who won promotion after sticking to a consistent starting eleven throughout the course of the season. In fact, Burnley used 23 different players in league games last season. However, three players – Tom Heaton, David Jones and Jason Shackell – started in all 46. Moreover another seven started in 37 games or more.

In contrast Wigan used 34 players in the league last year. However, in all competitions they played 11 matches more than Burnley over the course of the season. Leon Barnett and Emmerson Boyce both started in 39 games, James Perch in 38 and James McArthur in 37.

Rosler will cite the example of Alex Ferguson, who never picked the same team twice. He remains a fan of squad rotation, dating back to his formative years as a player under Otto Rehhagel at Kaiserslautern. Rehhagel is one most successful coaches in German football history, but perhaps better known as the coach of the dour Greek side that won the European Championship in 2004. However, Rehhagel won the Bundesliga with Kaiserslautern in 1998 with a newly promoted team that attacked with verve and seemed to have hidden depths of energy. Rehhagel operated a rotation system, with the result that all players in the squad felt involved and had a part to play. The result was a strong team spirit.

Given his previous history and the fact that he now has a very strong and well balanced squad, Rosler is likely to continue his rotations. However, most fans will hope that he will not be making wholesale changes in consecutive matches. There is the alternative of giving a player a run of games, then resting him.

For tomorrow’s match Rosler will most likely field a similar lineup to the team that beat Birmingham some two weeks ago. If he continues to opt for 3-5-2 he will probably choose between Ivan Ramis and Leon Barnett to play alongside Emmerson Boyce and Rob Kiernan in the back line of three. The heading ability of Barnett could be a useful tool against Blackburn who play with two big men upfront.

Kiernan continues to have the backing of the manager, having kept his place despite more experienced central defenders challenging him for a place. The ex-Watford player is particularly strong in coming forward to intercept balls before they reach the strikers. Moreover his passing from defence is getting better and better. Last time Latics played at Ewood at the end of last season they were undone by the central strikers, the 6’ 4” Frenchman Rudy Gestede and the 6’1” Scot Jordan Rhodes, whom they are likely to face again tomorrow.

Of the new players neither Delort nor Forshaw is likely to be match fit, although one or both could appear on the bench. However, William Kvist has played two games in the past week for Denmark. He played a full 90 minutes in the friendly against Turkey, followed by 74 minutes in the European Championship win against Armenia.

Despite the loss of James McArthur, Rosler has options in midfield. He might be tempted to put a solid wall in front of his defence by including Kvist alongside Cowie in holding midfield, pushing Emyr Huws further forward.

James McClean has recovered from injury, although he is not yet fully match fit. He could well come off the bench for Callum McManaman at some stage of the proceedings.

Blackburn have beaten Latics in 6 of the last 7 matches at Ewood Park, in all competitions. They are currently level with Wigan having 7 points from 5 games.

Given past history and the strength of Blackburn’s squad, tomorrow is likely to prove a difficult test. Latics can expect a strong physical challenge from the home side with balls raining in to their penalty box.

Physical fitness has been problematic for Rosler’s squad so far this season. Tomorrow represents an acid test.

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Rosler’s promotion winning team at Wigan

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

They are the fittest team in the division and their high pressing unnerves opposition defenders into giving the ball away. They have a rock solid defence and are not averse to grinding out results. The team has genuine pace up front and that enables them to make deadly counterattacks. They are well disciplined and every player gives one hundred percent effort. They are dangerous from set pieces, with players who have the skill to curve the ball round defensive walls and score or create opportunities. Goal scoring is deemed as a collective responsibility and players in all outfield positions make a significant contribution over the course of the season.

Could this be a description of Uwe Rosler’s promotion-winning Wigan Athletic side, 2014-15?

These are early days still. Rosler’s squad building is not yet complete, with three weeks of the transfer window remaining. However, the squad already looks strong, especially in defence. Rosler will be hoping to offload the hapless Grant Holt, to reduce the wage bill and be able to bring in another central striker. In Adam Forshaw he is seeking another creative midfielder to complement Shaun Maloney. Media reports also suggest he is interested in Aston Villa winger, Alexander Tonev. More loan players are also likely to be brought in, with George Saville of Chelsea a clear target. If Rosler spends money on Forshaw and a central striker he is likely to have to offset the costs by pulling in transfer money by letting at least one of his current squad go.

Last season’s promotion push stumbled at the playoffs. By then Latics had played an awful lot of games in a short space of time. Despite their tiredness they pushed Queens Park Rangers into extra time of the second match, although in reality they had all but lost their best chance of going t through being unable to find a way past Harry Redknapp’s parked bus at the DW Stadium. That match called for a moment of magic from the likes of Shaun Maloney, Callum McManaman or Nick Powell. Powell’s game had gone off the boil after a mid-season injury and he did not get into the squad for the playoff games. McManaman had had a frustrating season, mired by niggling injuries, and Maloney had not got back to his best after a long spell out through injury.

There was little to choose between Latics and QPR last season, but it was the Londoners who went up. Lots of teams came to park their buses at the DW last season and it is likely to be the same scenario this year. However, McManaman is now approaching full fitness and is likely to terrorise Championship team defences in a way that he was infrequently able to do last season. Rosler has carefully nurtured the invaluable Maloney through the pre-season and although he has had no competitive playing time so far he might well appear on the bench against Reading.

Rosler will continue to use his preferred 4-3-3 and 3-5-2 systems, switching seamlessly between the two. Although the former appears to be his preferred system, he has a large reservoir of fine central defenders he can call on to operate with three at the back. With the 3-5-2 system players like McManaman and James McClean are pushed further inside, as second strikers alongside the centre forward. Rosler likens McClean to a ‘wild horse’, although he clearly has faith in the Irishman. It is to be hoped that Rosler can break-in the wild horse, having him lift his head and look up when going on his marauding runs. McClean and McManaman are players who can cause panic when they run at defences, particularly on the counterattack.

Rosler will be confident that his side can mount a strong challenge for promotion this year. He might not have strikers who can score 20 goals a season, but he has a very strong defence, a combative but skilful midfield and exciting forwards.

Providing his flair players stay fit, Rosler might well be a Premier League manager in 2015.

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Where will Uwe do his summer shopping?

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

shopping“We will be investing in our playing and coaching staff, and I think it’s important to keep working on changing the culture at the football club.”

So said Uwe Rosler to the Wigan Evening Post this week.

When Roberto Martinez took over as manager of Wigan Athletic in June 2009, he quickly got to work on changing the culture of the club. He started by bringing in Graeme Jones as his assistant manager, to be followed by coaching and backroom staff from his previous club, Swansea. Within four days of his appointment Martinez signed Jordi Gomez, who had been on loan at Swansea, from Espanyol. He was to bring in Jason Scotland from his old club a month later.

Is Rosler set to follow the same pattern?

When the German was appointed in December, many of us expected him to bring in a swath of coaching and backroom staff from Brentford. Within a month he brought in Chris Haslam from his old club as Head of Performance. Alan Kernahan and Peter Farrell – assistant manager and first team coach – had left Brentford within a week of Rosler’s departure and it seemed a matter of time before they were installed at Wigan. It did not happen.

At the time the rationale among fans on social media was that Haslam had been brought in because of concerns in the fitness levels of Latics’ players. The non-arrival of Rosler’s trusted lieutenants was put down to either budget issues or Dave Whelan’s loyalty towards staff previously appointed.

Who would bet against either Kernahan or Farrell or both arriving over summer, given Rosler’s recent statement? Moreover will Rosler follow Martinez’s lead by signing players from his previous club?

When Martinez was appointed it was clear that he was going to employ the same playing style that had served him well during his time at Swansea. That was going to involve a paradigm shift for players who had played under the pragmatic Steve Bruce. However, Martinez had brought in playing and coaching staff to help catalyse the shift. Gomez had been the ‘player of the season’ for Swansea, making 44 starts and scoring 14 goals. Scotland had started in 48 matches, scoring 24 goals. Both fitted into the playing style that Martinez wanted and appeared to be good signings at the time.

Not long after the end of Martinez’s first season Scotland was gone. The Trinidadian just could not put the ball in the back of the net. Gomez struggled to establish himself and made more appearances off the bench than as a starter. The step up to the Premier League from the Championship appeared to have been too much for them.

However, Martinez continued to have faith in Gomez and the player persevered for three more years with his manager, despite hostility from elements of the crowd, but never establishing himself as a regular starter. But given his previous success in the Championship, Gomez appeared to be a key player for Owen Coyle at the beginning of the season. However, the Scot did not get the best out of Gomez, sometimes following Martinez’s habit of playing him wide on the right. However, the arrival of Rosler was to enable Gomez to play the football he was always capable of at Championship level, resulting in him being voted ‘player of the season’.

Following Rosler’s departure, Mark Warburton has done a great job at Brentford and they will be joining Latics in the Championship next season. Among the outstanding performers in their promotion season have been two 22 year olds – defender Harlee Dean and ex-Everton youth midfielder Adam Forshaw. Centre forward Clayton Donaldson is out of contract and could be subject to interest from Rosler. The 6’1” Bradford born player has scored 46 goals in 135 appearances for the Bees. However, he is 30 years old. Another fine performer for them has been George Saville, a 20 year old on loan from Chelsea, who can play in midfield and left back. The Italian Marcello Trotta, a 21 year old on loan from Fulham, has also been a key player in attack.

It remains to be seen whether Rosler will raid his former club for players. He told Wigan Today “I have a very good squad of players already available to me, but we have to tweak here and there.”

Rosler maintains that Latics do not need to sell any players but qualifies the position by stating that “Clearly every player at every football club has his price, but our players are under contract. I don’t think certain clubs would be able to afford them – unless we got the kind of offer we got for James McCarthy, which obviously any club would have to consider.”

Rosler’s statement echoes those made by Martinez during his time at Wigan, a reflection on Whelan’s willingness to let players leave if the price is right.

Despite the public statements it is likely that Rosler will sell some players over summer in order to raise funds to bring in new ones who would fit into his playing style. A left back and a couple of decent strikers will be foremost in Rosler’s shopping list. The latter are most likely to come at a cost, hence the need to raise funds.

As usual at this time of the year all kinds of speculation is floating around the social media. One day we get headlines telling us that Nick Powell is going to Leicester or Swansea, then later we hear that he will stay at Wigan. It’s crazy time.

Rosler has suggested he might have two signings lined up by the end of the week. Maybe those signings will give us inkling as to what is to follow?

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