Tag Archives: rosler

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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Finances, FFP and the long term future for Wigan Athletic

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

2012-moneyball

Leicester City were once again champions of the second tier of English football this year. No club has done that more than the Foxes, this being their seventh title.

Leicester were deserving winners of the 2013-2014 Skybet Championship. Manager Nigel Pearson had built up a squad that in terms of quality and depth was far superior to those of the majority of the other clubs in the division. His success was reflected in their tally of 102 points for the season, the joint highest since 2005-06 when Reading amassed an impressive 106 points.

But did Leicester buy their success?

Leicester lost £34 million in the 2012-13 season, beating what had been a record deficit of £29.7 million the previous year. However, the Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules came into play at the start of the 2013-14 season. FFP was to allow Championship clubs to lose no more than £8 million this season or they would face a fine or a ban on player transfers. Leicester’s Thai owners had lent £75 million, but facing FFP they drastically reduced the club’s debt by conversion into equity, as Dave Whelan did at Wigan. The Leicester Mercury  reports that the club can “effectively make a £13 million loss and still comply with these rules. This is because the rules do not include costs relating to the youth academy and various one-off losses.”

The FFP rules clearly have some loopholes and Leicester’s accounting team, like those at many other clubs, will be keen to manipulate them and not pay the penalties. Leicester still expect to meet that £13 million loss target.

In contrast with Leicester’s total losses of almost £64 million over the two seasons from 2011-13, Wigan Athletic actually made a profit in each. Reversing a spiral of losses spanning decades, Latics made total net profits of £4.3 million in 2011-12 and £822,000 in 2012-13. That was accomplished while they were in the Premier League.  Can they continue to make a profit – or at least break even – in the totally different environment of the Skybet Championship?

When Wigan Athletic were relegated from the Premier League last season it was clear that both revenues and attendances were going to drop. The question was going to be – by how much?

Latics’ gate money in the Premier League days was always dwarfed by the TV revenues they were receiving and from a purely financial viewpoint attendances were not much of an issue. Last year match day revenues covered no more than 10% of total revenue of £56.4m. Without the television revenues, the club could never have seriously competed in the Premier League.

However, relegation entailed a huge loss in TV revenue – an average Premier League club now receives around £60 million, while the average Championship club receives around £2.5 million. It was clear that the club would need to look at maximizing its other sources of revenue. However, parachute payments (£59 million over four years, including £23 million in the first) would help cover the shortfall  and give Latics a competitive advantage over the majority of the clubs who receive only the £2.2 million Premier League Solidarity payment.

Financial accounts for the season just finished are not yet available, but the likelihood is that the majority of the clubs in the Championship once again lost money. In 2012-13 only five clubs made a profit: Blackpool, Crystal Palace, Huddersfield, Peterborough and Watford. Most of those clubs did so through their business in the transfer market.

The Championship clearly has a long way to go in terms of marketing itself. Its television revenues are paltry in comparison with the Premier League. This despite the fact that  average attendances for the Championship division place it in eighth place of leagues in the whole of Europe.

With an average of 43,497 the Bundesliga once again tops the attendance charts in Europe ahead of the top flight leagues in England, Spain, Italy, France and the Netherlands. The second division of the Bundesliga had an average attendance of 17,888, with England’s second tier following with 16,605.

Wigan Athletic’s average league attendance of 15,177 this season was some 8% below the division  average. Brighton topped the attendance table with an average of 27,283. However, Latics ranked third in attendances away from home drawing an average crowd of 17,370, bettered only by Leeds and Burnley.

In the two years they had spent in the Championship division prior to promotion, Latics averaged 9,531 in 2003-04 and 11,563 in 2004-05 when they finished second. Latics now have a much bigger and younger fan base than they did then. That core of younger supporters will help attendances remain at least where they currently are at the moment unless the club is relegated.

On a local level their attendances remain above those of Wigan Warriors who averaged less than 14,000 in 2013.  Since Latics entered the Premier League in 2005 their attendances have been constantly superior. The challenge will be to hold them there whilst remaining in the Championship. Latics highest league attendance at home this year was 19,226 against Leeds United. The lowest was 12,970 when hosting Yeovil.

Latics’ Lancashire rivals in the Championship are old clubs with fan bases built up over more than a century. Wigan Athletic were formed in 1932, got into the Football League in 1978 and the Premier League in 2005. Their average attendance in the 1993-94 season just twenty years ago – not a long time span compared with the age of those clubs – was 1,897, which is an eighth of what they had in this 2013-14 season.

This season their average attendance was higher than those of Burnley (13,719 – founded in 1882), Blackpool (14,216 – founded in 1877) and Blackburn (14,961 – founded in 1875), being bettered only by Bolton (16,140 – founded in 1874).

During their stay in the Premier League Wigan Athletic wisely kept their ticket prices well below those of most other clubs. The ticket prices  remain competitive in the Championship. In the 2013-14 season the lowest price for a ticket at the DW Stadium was £15, equal to costs at Blackburn, Leicester and Nottingham Forest. Such tickets were cheaper only at  Derby and Huddersfield at £10. Moreover Latics’ cheapest season ticket price of £280 was below average, being bettered only by Yeovil £273, Bournemouth £250, Derby £230, Blackburn £225, Blackpool £195 and Huddersfield £199.

Through playing successes in recent years, keeping admission prices low and an increasing involvement in the local community the club has built up a fan base that now rivals those of their venerable neighbours and competitors. Through Whelan’s actions of converting debt into equity, Wigan Athletic are currently close to being debt free. They are being run along sound financial lines and are not living beyond their means, as is the norm with most Championship clubs.

However, the Championship is a difficult environment in which to operate. It is the parachute payments that are currently keeping Latics afloat. In order to hold a mid table position a club typically carries a wage bill in excess of £20 million. But the total of match day receipts, television revenue and commercial revenue is unlikely to reach £10 million next season and they will be without the financial benefits of the Europa League.

The long-term future for Latics in this division appears bleak. Parachute payments will decrease by £5 million next season, when Latics really need to put in a concerted effort to get back to the Premier League where they would have the huge financial buffer of media revenues. They will face stiff financial competition from the relegated clubs – Cardiff, Fulham and Norwich – with their first year parachute money and Premier League squads. Moreover  there are other clubs, not long departed from the top tier, receiving such subsidies. What will happen if Latics do not get promotion within the next three years?

Over recent years there have been a lot of clubs who have maintained high wage bills, without the playing success to match it. However, the clubs near the bottom of the table have almost invariably tended to be those with the lowest wage bills.

In an interesting study of Championship club finances made by Kevin Messere he quotes that: “Typically to finish in the top six a cost base of £30M is required.” Given the figures we have already looked at, Latics are unlikely to be able to reach such a figure without making a loss, unless they use financial reserves or make a healthy profit in the transfer market. However, given the significant outlay to be made at Charnock Richard they are unlikely to have much in reserve. The inference is that Uwe Rosler will have to sell off some of his prized assets or to cut his squad size drastically.

Given the inability of the Football League to attract big money from the media there will continue to be a large imbalance in income in the Championship division for years to come. Parachute payments give a huge financial advantage to clubs coming down from the Premier League, although many have been weighed down by the salaries of players remaining on long-term contracts. In 2012-13 relegated clubs Bolton and Blackburn had costs amounting to around £50M, leading to big financial losses over the season, despite the first year parachute payments they received.

Given the precarious financial future ahead of the club, Dave Whelan has made a bold move in purchasing what promises to be an excellent venue for a youth academy. Put simply, Wigan Athletic needs to be a “selling club”. Selling one prized asset each year might well be enough to keep the club afloat over the long term, no matter which division they are in.

It is going to take some years for the club to be able to develop its academy sufficiently to provide potential first team players. In the meantime it will be a matter of making astute signings, of young players in particular, who can be nurtured and eventually sold on.

We can expect a lot of changes over the summer. Rosler will have to look at offloading players with high salaries and will have to reduce his squad size significantly. Changes might also be made within the coaching and backroom staff, with him bringing in people who have worked with him previously who know his philosophy and the style of play he seeks. Ex-Brentford assistant manager Alan Kernahan and coach Peter Farrell will surely be under consideration.

Next season promises to be a fascinating one for Wigan Athletic. Rosler will lose a number of quality players over the summer. The question will be whether he will be able to find quality replacements, given the financial resources at his disposal.

In the meantime Latics will strive towards long-term sustainability as a higher echelon team in English football.

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Latics at Loftus Road – will Uwe park the bus?

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

Thanks to WiganWorld for the photo.

In September 2004 Chelsea and Tottenham played a goalless draw at Stamford Bridge. After the match Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho commented “As we say in Portugal they brought the bus and left it in front of the goal. I would have been frustrated if I had been a supporter who paid £50 to watch this game because Spurs came to defend. I’m really frustrated because there was only one team looking to win, they only came not to concede – it’s not fair for the football we played.”

“Parking the bus” has since become a well-used term in football vernacular. Ironically Mourinho himself has become an expert in having his teams do exactly that same thing when he has felt a 0-0 draw would suit him.

Despite making noises about playing an attacking line-up, Harry Redknapp parked the bus on Wigan Athletic on Friday night. The wily East Londoner had clearly made up his mind that a 0-0 draw was what he wanted. With an away record of W8 D5 L10 Redknapp’s team had the least number of points away from home of the top six in clubs the Championship division. In comparison their home record was bettered only by champions, Leicester City.

Latics go to Loftus Road tomorrow to play a team that has lost only two league games all season on their home ground. One of those was to Leicester and the other was to play-off contenders Reading.

Loftus Road has never been an easy place for visiting teams. The pitch measures 102 by 66 meters, on the small side compared with the standard dimensions of 105 by 68 meters stipulated by the Premier League and UEFA. The stadium itself is small, with a capacity of 18,360. The stadium feels tightly enclosed as all four stands meet with no gaps and fans are closer to the pitch than at other stadia. Away teams can easily feel intimidated as the crowd noise reverberates in a compact space.

It is a difficult task for Rosler’s team, which has played 61 games this season. However, Latics are used to playing against the odds. In March they went to the Etihad Stadium to defeat a Manchester City side that had won 12 of its 13 home matches in the Premier League, scoring 43 goals. Rosler might be right in saying that QPR have three times the wage bill of Latics, and they do have some quality players, but they pale in comparison with the might of Manchester City.

Redknapp might well have done his homework prior to Friday’s game. If he had then he would have expected Latics to struggle against a massed defence. They have done so all season. During Rosler’s tenure they have had most of their best results away from home, where they have more room to play. They won 4-1 at playoff rivals Nottingham Forest, 3-0 at Sheffield Wednesday and had hard fought wins at Brighton, Derby and Reading.

Despite what seemed to be a bad result on Friday, Rosler did not seem over concerned. He acknowledged that his wing backs had not pushed forward sufficiently. It could be because Redknapp had planted Hoilett and Traore in wide positions as a tactical ploy to hold back Perch and Beausejour. Or maybe Rosler had wanted to keep things tight and not push them as far forward as usual.

Rosler saying that the pressure is now on QPR might be playing mind games with Redknapp, but could also be a statement he genuinely believes. So what will Rosler’s tactics be tomorrow?

It would be ironic if the German were to turn the tables on Redknapp by parking the bus too. Allowing the home team to do the work of breaking down a massed defence, at least in the first half, would conserve the energy of his players for a concerted push later in the game.

But then again Rosler might go for broke by blitzing QPR from the start. To do so he would be asking a lot from players with already tired legs. However, with vigorous high pressing from the start Latics could disrupt the home team’s play and possibly secure an early goal. Getting that goal could be psychologically huge for a Latics side that has lost some of its self-confidence through a string of indifferent results.

It will be interesting to see if Rosler continues to operate with a back line of three central defenders and wing backs. He did so in the victory at the Etihad, but reverted to a flat back four in the FA Cup semi-final against Arsenal. When Latics visited QPR in March he played a back line of Rogne, Ramis and Kiernan. It was a tight game, with Latics a little unfortunate to lose 1-0.

Unfortunately it looks like Latics will be without the excellent Ivan Ramis tomorrow. Rosler’s gamble of playing him at Blackburn misfired, with the Spaniard going off injured at half time. Ramis could make a huge difference in the centre of defence if he were fit.

Gary Caldwell looked comfortable on Friday, but the defence were put under little pressure by a defensive QPR side. Playing him tomorrow would be another gamble and it could misfire. However, Rosler boldly thrust the Scot into the FA Cup semi-final and it came off.

This could prove to be one match too many for Latics at the end of a marathon season. They have done so well to get into the playoffs after a poor managerial appointment in summer left them heading towards the lower reaches of the table by December. Win or lose, the fans will continue to back Rosler.

If Wigan were to lose tomorrow it might well be the last match for the club for a number of players recruited in the Premier League era. Another year in the Championship would mean tightening the purse belts and letting the larger wage earners move on.

However, having seen what Latics have done before when the odds were stacked against them, only a fool would count them out.

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Have the loan players let Latics down?

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

 

Josh McEachran
Nick Powell

 

Last night’s bore draw against Queens Park Rangers leaves Latics with a mountain to climb in the return game on Monday. After 61 matches this season can Uwe Rosler motivate his players to find sufficient energy and motivation to give it a real go at Loftus Road?

Significantly there were no loan players in the starting eleven to face QPR. Nick Powell and Josh McEachran were not even named in the squad. Jack Collison and Nicky Maynard were on the bench and the latter was called into play with less than 20 minutes to go.

The situation last night was calling for someone to come off the bench and do something special, as the game drifted towards a goalless draw. Maybe Powell could have chipped in with one his spectacular goals and McEachran’s passing might have unlocked QPR’s dogged defence? It was not to be.

When Uwe Rosler took over in December he inherited a squad with an average age of around 28. There were ten players who had been signed over summer by Owen Coyle, together with those brought in during the Martinez era. Two of Coyle’s initial signings had been loan players, Nick Powell and Ryan Shotton. Both made favourable impressions during Coyle’s tenure. The Scot also brought in Marc Albrighton and Will Keane on short term loans. The former looked useful, but the latter could not establish him. Ironically Keane is now on loan at QPR.

Once the January transfer window opened, Rosler too, was busy in the loan market.

His first acquisition was young defender Tyias Browning from Everton on a one month loan. Browning had a good debut after coming on after half time in a 3-0 home win over Bournemouth. However, he gave away a penalty in the 3-0 defeat at Doncaster and never appeared again.

Nicky Maynard, aged 26, was signed on-loan from Cardiff in mid-January. The striker had been dogged by injury and was in need of playing time. He made his debut in the 3-0 home win against Doncaster. Since then Maynard has started in 13 games, coming on as substitute 5 times. He has scored 4 goals and made one assist. Maynard has struggled with the physical demands of the lone centre forward role and is probably better suited to a twin striker system.

The 21 year old Josh McEachran was then signed from Chelsea, on loan until the end of the season. He made a fine start coming on in the 57th minute against Charlton. His exquisite pass in the 88th minute led to Marc-Antoine Fortune getting an equalizer, which was later converted into a victory through a Jordi Gomez free kick. McEachran had successful prior experience in the Championship division, having played 38 games on loan at Middlesbrough last season. At the time he looked a very good loan signing. Since then he has made 8 starts for Latics, with four appearances off the bench. In 6 of his 8 starts he was substituted on or before the 68th minute.

The 24 year old Martyn Waghorn made an immediate impact on joining on loan from Leicester City. He made his debut in the 1-0 defeat at Huddersfield on February 8th. Waghorn was soon to become a key player in Rosler’s set up with his versatility and his ability to take set pieces. Waghorn has made 15 starts, with just one appearance off the bench in last night’s match. He has scored 5 goals and has 5 assists. He has now been given a long term contract.

Ryan Tunnicliffe, aged 22, was signed on loan from Fulham at the end of February. He had a successful loan spell at Ipswich in the first half of the season. He made his debut as a substitute in the 4-1 win at Nottingham Forest on March 1st. He made his last appearance against Bolton at the end of March. Tunnicliffe struggled to adapt to Rosler’s system. He started in three games and came off the bench in two.

The 26 year old Jack Collison was signed in mid-March on loan from West Ham. His debut was off the bench after 61 minutes in the 2-1 home win over Watford. Collison came with a lot of Premier League experience with the Londoners. After initially looking like he could slot into Rosler’s style of play, his performances have been disappointing. He has made 5 starts, with 6 appearances off the bench.

In the 61 matches that Wigan Athletic have played this season they have used 35 players, out of which 10 were signed on loan. Only Powell has been on a season long loan, the remainder being half season or less.

The most successful of the loan players have been Powell, Shotton and Waghorn. But it would be fair to say that Albrighton impressed in his brief stay.

Uwe Rosler had a successful track record in using loan players at Brentford. In fact they had four players in the squad that recently won promotion to the Championship, who the German signed on loan. Forward Marcello Trotta, on loan from Fulham, made 37 league appearances for them this season. George Saville, midfielder from Chelsea, made 40 appearances. Blackburn’s Alan Judge made 22.

When Rosler first started bringing in loan players at Wigan it added an extra dimension to the squad, let alone lowering its average age. However, as the season progressed and games came in thick and fast, so many of the loan players disappointed. That led to Rosler having to be over-reliant on his key players, who have struggled to maintain their high performance standards after being overloaded with playing time.

That was evident yesterday as a starting lineup without loan players looked jaded and unable to raise their tempo.

There has been criticism of Latics’ current crop of loan players from fans who say they do not have their hearts in the club and think they are above it. They cite the perceived lack of effort from talented individuals like Powell and McEachran who will go back to their elite clubs, Manchester United and Chelsea. However, Collison is unlikely to survive the end of contract cull at West Ham and Maynard faces another season in the Championship with relegated Cardiff.

Why those loan players have not played up to potential is hard to determine. Maybe some of the criticism is valid, but injuries and physical fitness might also be factors. The bottom line is that, Waghorn excepted, they have not performed up to expectations.

Ideally Powell and McEachran in particular will come back on Monday and show us all what they are capable of. They are both talented individuals who could make a difference in the pressure cauldron of Loftus Road on Monday.

The likelihood is that they have played their last games for Wigan.

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Wigan Athletic 0 QPR 0 – a damp squib

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Other and tagged with , , , , , , ,
Skybet championship play off semi final, Wigan Athletic v QPR

Gomez latches on to Caldwell’s long pass after 42 minutes.

Seldom will one see a game as sterile as this, with so few chances created. It was a damp squib. A Latics team looking low on confidence had 58% of the possession, but never committed enough men forward to pose problems for the visitors’ packed defence.

Uwe Rosler surprised us by leaving Martyn Waghorn on the bench, playing Marc-Antoine Fortune up front with Callum McManaman and Shaun Maloney. Rosler preferred Rob Kiernan to Leon Barnett and he was joined by Emmerson Boyce and Gary Caldwell in a central backline of three. James Perch and Jean Beausejour were the wing backs, with James McArthur and Jordi Gomez in central midfield. Scott Carson continued in goal. Nick Powell did not make the squad.

Harry Redknapp put out a lineup with lots of creative players, but from the onset it was clear that his tactic would be to pack his defence and frustrate Latics. It was a measure of strength of the QPR defence that Wigan’s first decent shot on goal came after 42 minutes when Gomez pulled down a long pass from Caldwell and forced a good save from Rob Green. Carson had been virtually unemployed at the other end. It had been a scrappy, physical affair with McArthur, McManaman and Caldwell joining Richard Dunne in receiving a yellow card.

QPR came out more positively early in the second half with Junior Hoilett looking lively and having a shot go wide. Carson did well to punch away a cross from Hill, and then made a good save from a low shot from Traore.

Latics got back on top of possession and had the chance of the match when Kiernan found Fortune eight yards from goal, but the French Guinean spooned it wide. One was expecting Rosler to make his habitual substitutions around the 60 minute mark, but they were not forthcoming. The game continued to be scrappy, with Latics mainly relying on long balls which were gobbled up by the visiting defence.

The substitutes came after 76 minutes as Martyn Waghorn and Nicky Maynard replaced McManaman and Fortune, but it had little effect. The game reached its predictable conclusion in a dull goalless draw.

The Good

QPR came in to the match in better form than a Latics team that had lost 4 out of their last 6 games. It showed.

Wigan looked solid defensively.

Looking on the bright side Latics are still in with a chance in the return match on Monday.

The Bad

It was more like watching a game of chess rather than a football match. QPR stymied Latics, who had little to offer in the final third of the field. Apart from that first half shot from Gomez, Wigan’s flair players could not provide that telling pass or shot that would make the difference.

What was missing from Latics was tempo. Roger Espinoza is a player who can not only put energy into a game, but has a catalytic effect on his team mates. However, he sat on the bench the whole match. James McClean could also have come on and injected some life into Wigan’s play. He too was shunned.

We did not see Latics playing the Rosler way with high pressing and fast counterattacks. They were insipid and cautious, the wing backs holding back and not enough players getting in the box.

Fortune started the match after not having scored in his last 17 games. It was no surprise when he missed Latics’ best opportunity in the second half. However, that was the only opportunity he had, given the woeful service into the box. Rosler could be criticized for starting Fortune rather than Maynard who had scored two goals in the previous game. However, had Maynard started he would have been on the receiving end of too many long balls, which is not his forte. Fortune once again plugged away, given poor service.

Latics have played QPR three times this season and still not scored a goal.

However, all is not lost. An early goal for Wigan on Monday would provide a big boost for their flagged self-confidence and could see them go through. Stranger things have happened.

Player Ratings

Scott Carson: 6.5 – did all that was required of him.

James Perch: 6 – solid.

Emmerson Boyce: 6 – solid.

Gary Caldwell: 6.5 – solid in defence and put some decent long balls forward.

Rob Kiernan: 6 – looked comfortable in defence. Injured by Clint Hill’s elbow in the first half, unseen by the officials.

Jean Beausejour: 6 – solid in defence, seemed afraid to go too far forward.

James McArthur: 6 – worked hard to maintain possession.

Jordi Gomez: 6 – worked hard but could not put his stamp on the game.

Callum McManaman: 6 – could not find a way through a massed defence.

Marc-Antoine Fortune: 5.5 – spurned his only opportunity of the game.

Shaun Maloney: 6 – not at his best yet after a long time out injured.

Substitutes

Martyn Waghorn, Nicky Maynard: – came on after 76 minutes, but could not make the difference.

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