What Will This Club Do To Surprise Us Next? - Notes for Wigan Friday, 14th Mar 2014 10:15 by HarryFromBath HarryfromBath assesses the mood in the opposition camp ahead of Saturday's game by delving into their forums. "We have made as much history in 12 months as most other clubs can only dream of achieving in a number of decades. The history we have made in the past decade would match other clubs' entire existence." Former Brentford manager Uwe Rosler has led the Latics on a charge up the Championship table since taking over in early December. They have won seven games on the spin, and last Sunday's famous FA Cup win at Manchester City propelled them into the national spotlight. "Oh My God! I love this club so much.", "What a club, what a team", "I cannot stop shaking", "That fair messed up my blood pressure", "The Cup is now in our soul", "If anyone says ‘Your club has no history', just say to them, ‘Yes, I know. That's why we keep making it'." Uwe Rosler"It's still early days in Uwe's era at the club, but one thing which seems to be coming out is a sheer determination to win every game. It's possible he has the strongest winning mentality of any manager we've ever had", "He has passion, guts and flair, but also has discipline and a great work ethic." "We all loved Martinez, but I'm starting to sway the way of Uwe", "Rosler is in the mould of Mourinho and Ferguson. We've seen the beautiful passing game that Martinez brought to the DW, but Rosler know how to win dirty as well as by playing free-flowing attacking football." "We've got a winner and I love every minute of it", "He is decisive and unsentimental in games. He sees a problem and makes his tactical switches to fix it quickly", "He is a fantastic manager and his brand of football, though different, would appear to be more effective." Winning Ugly"An ugly win, but brilliant stuff." Wigan rode their luck winning 1-0 at home to the Owls on Wednesday, courtesy of a late Jordi Gomez penalty. The visitors missed a spotkick and many Latics felt that keeper Ali Al Habsi was fortunate to stay on the pitch for his foul which led to the penalty. "We looked lethargic and a tired team. It needed someone to inject a little pace in midfield into the game. We had a little luck, but kept at it and got our reward. We will play much better than that and lose", "We just don't look like losing. There's a winners' mentality there now." Tactical Flexibility"I find it hard to guess the team under Rosler because he rotates both the players and the formation." Wigan generally play with three central midfielders, but Latics have commented on their team playing every formation from 3-5-2 to 4-2-3-1 and 4-3-3, occasionally swapping during games. "We have the ability to mix our tactics completely, making it impossible for other managers to guess how we're going to play", "He can play the same formation with a completely different style, defensively at Brighton and with greater attacking intent at Forest." "We are pressing high, stopping the defenders from playing the ball out without pressure. Their goalie ends up lumping it up field where out defenders have a good chance to taking possession." This is taking its toll on a team which has already played 45 competitive games this season. "What's happening to us in the second half of games? We held out at Cardiff (in the Cup) and at home to Barnsley, but were very poor after the break. A better team would have won that game." Defence"We're fairly solid defensively. This is the pattern for us recently: an early goal, hold for a while and then get a second when they try to chase it. Then we try to put it to bed with another or simply keep a clean sheet." Ali Al Habsi "I have seen Ali pull off absolutely ridiculous saves at times which has won us matches", "He's the best penalty saver I have ever seen." The 32-year-old Oman international is more mobile than Scott Carson and a better shot-stopper." "Ali's not perfect. He does sail a bit close to the wind. Sometimes he lets other teams get nerve-wrackingly close to the ball when he could be more careful", "He's sketchy at both kicking and flapping at crosses which he could catch." "If it's a vote, 99% of fans will vote for Ali no matter how well Scott Carson plays." Former Baggie and 28-year-old England international Scott Carson made a rare start in the famous Cup win at the Etihad. "It's a great problem to have, as both are worthy of being first choice." "Scott has done nothing wrong since his [ankle] injury, and played well against City, making one really important save down at his post.", "He's better than Ali with the ball at his feet", "He does have a habit of punching instead of catching the ball, and it can go straight to the opposition." "James Perch is solid as a rock and effective at getting forward." The 28-year-old ex-Newcastle right-back or holding midfielder "is one player who simple does not get the headlines. He just goes about his business like a good professional", "He's a good solid lad. Nowt fancy, but he gets the job done." A foul on Perch won the Latics their late match-winning penalty on Wednesday and some felt "he did make a meal of it". "Sometimes he can be a bit too eager to win the ball back and he gets caught out of position if he loses out, but he generally keeps hold of the ball well." There has been very little comment about the 29-year-old Chile international and former Birmingham full-back Jean Beausejour on the left flank. Many Latics feel he is better as a wing-back. "He delivers great balls into the box, and when we play well everything can go through him." Former Blackpool left-back Stephen Crainey has also featured recently. "His work rate was immense from the first minute to the last against City", "He was super-dependable, and excellent against Jesus Navas." The 32-year-old "can make some wayward passes, but links well with his midfielder." Centre-back Ivan Ramis "is the cool head at the back. He's always reliable and deceptively creative for a centre-back." The 29-year-old Spanish former Mallorca defender "has the intelligence to be in the right place at the right time, as well as organising the other defenders around him." "I think he's a genetically gifted person." This comment by the manager about former Budgie Leon Barnett provoked much mirth among supporters. The 28-year-old "is solid as ever, but as always is a bit dodgy on the ball", "He's a great player who always puts a shift in." "Leon is quality, and although he's not young, there's room for him to still improve. I think he will suit Uwe as he builds his defence, as he has pace, and that's needed for a high line", "He struggled on the ball in windy conditions against Huddersfield and needs to improve his footwork." Emmerson Boyce"I cannot find words to express my love for Boycey. Footballers don't do ‘forever' and few of them do loyalty either, but this man does", "Out of all the players Bob took to Everton with him, I prayed that Boyce wouldn't be one of them."
The 34-year-old former Palace player "deserves a statue. He was a man-mountain [against City] and a leader. What a man", "He was a colossus, just like Heskey when we beat Sheffield United to survive our second season in the Premier League", "He's been a true Wigan legend." "His last-ditch tackle to deny Dzeko - and City - the equaliser looked practically impossible to pull off", "I'm probably getting over-enthusiastic, but for me it was as good as Banks' save against Pele in Mexico", "He's got better with age. There's no reason why he can't carry on for a few more years." Central MidfieldWigan have been hit hard with injuries in midfield. Attacking midfielder Shaun Maloney has been out with a hip injury since September, Cup final hero Ben Watson broke his leg against Barnsley last month, and Chris McCann's season ended when he injured his knee in last Sunday's Cup win. At the time of writing, several websites and newspapers were running a story linking the Latics with Manchester City midfielder Jack Rodwell as an emergency loan signing until the end of the season. Chelsea loan signing Josh McEachran "can be wayward in his passing when nervous", "He gave the ball away in a dangerous area [against City] trying to turn his way out of trouble", "He has come off in recent games looking a bit worse for wear." The 21-year-old is praised for his tactical awareness. "He has a cool head and makes lots of neat touches. He worked very hard positionally to keep City players coming inside where we had numbers", "Josh has an eye for a pass into space." "James McArthur looks back to his best, and he ran his socks off in midfield. He's got that creative side back into his game and gives us composure in the middle." The 26-year-old former Hearts midfielder "can struggle in games, giving the ball away a lot and conceding cheap fouls." "I don't know what's wrong with Macca. Against the Owls, he was on fire before fading badly. Why can't he get fit enough to last 90 minutes?" "McArthur had to compensate for Tunnicliffe until he ran out of gas." Former Blue Ryan Tunnicliffe struggled against the Owls on Wednesday. "He started as if on fire and disappeared into a defensive role after 15 minutes", "He made some good runs off the ball and put in some good tackles." The 21-year-old "is going to have to do much better." "Tunnicliffe was disappointing simply because he looked shy and hid away from the ball on Wednesday. He needs to go and impose himself on the game as a central midfielder", "He was hiding and didn't want the ball. At times it was like playing with ten." "I hope Uwe gets Nick Powell sorted out. If he learns to find a pass, he could be brilliant." The 19-year-old Manchester United loan signing made a rare appearance against the Owls. "He can read the game well, but needs to realise he's not the only player who can shoot." Jordi Gomez"Cometh the hour, cometh Jordi Gomez", "I think we all love Jordi Gomez now", "He's always been a game changes are we've seen today [against City] he is carrying on doing just that", "He relieved a lot of pressure by getting the ball under control and on the deck for us, working hard defensively."
The 28-year-old Spanish former Espanyol man "constantly moves to find space, looks to get on the ball and create things moving forwards", "His corners are dangerous too. He hits them like Beckham", "He needs to think faster, as he has struggled to make that one step to a higher level." He struggled under former boss Owen Coyle. "The change of manager, getting away from hoofing the ball, has helped", "He's a highly talented player who was expected to drop technicality and expertise and just help kick the ball from one end of the pitch to the other." Wide Midfield"James McClean's work rate is second to none." The 24-year-old Republic of Ireland international and former Sunderland left-winger "has pace and makes good runs which should be picked out", "He puts us under pressure by giving the ball away too much rather than trying to keep some control." "Callum McManaman looks as dangerous as ever, but needs to calm down and work on his fitness. It's impossible to guess his next move and he's a nightmare for defenders." The 22-year-old right-winger "can be outstanding, but he contributes nothing when anonymous, not covering back."
"McManaman can often be one of the best players in the first half and then do nothing in the second", "He's our most potent attacking player when fit, but this year we've only seen glimpses." The youth product "is more of an impact player, struggling to dominate for 90 minutes". Honduras international Roger Espinoza has been a fringe player lately. The 27-year-old "can be an extremely effective player to bring on, but his eagerness to win the ball back can leave team mates exposed", "He takes a fatal extra second to assess the pitch and determine where he needs to be." Strikers"I like Martyn Waghorn. I admire his energy and pace", "He makes some good runs and puts a lot of dangerous balls into the box. He finds good attacking positions." The 24-year-old Leicester loan signing, "has a lot of energy and gets stuck in." "I'm very impressed with his corners. They are very threatening. The ones he swings in right under the crossbar always look like they will scare the keeper to death", "He plays very well off Nicky Maynard in the hole." Latics have been more critical of the 27-year-old Cardiff loan signing. "The game passed Maynard by without Wednesday's big centre-half not putting a foot wrong", "He fails to make an impact in games, and seems to fall over every time the ball comes across the box." Marc-Antoine Fortune"Marc-Antoine Fortune was immense against City. He held the ball brilliantly and helped us win the game", "He single-handedly won us a penalty and tirelessly ran for the team to put pressure on City's defenders", "He's a physical player who holds the ball well."
The 32-year-old former Celtic and West Brom player has featured out wide and as a striker in recent games. Against Cardiff in the Cup "he was playing so withdrawn at times that we seemed to be playing without a recognisable centre-forward. "This enabled us to overload the midfield. The flexibility was astonishing with players popping up all over the place. It seemed like total football at times. It requires tremendous willingness from all the players to cover team-mates, and requires exceptional fitness, which is why we tired so much in the second half." A Few Words About Grant Holt"Holt has to be the worst striker we have ever had", "By all accounts, Villa fans are as impressed with him as we were", "Most of us thought he'd do a good job. It's hard to believe just how bad he was", "I'm sure he's looking forward to his next pre-season with Uwe", "A major flop and a poor player." Supporters are withering in their criticism of the striker, who signed a three-year deal last summer, and who is currently on loan at Villa. "It's still hard to believe how appalling he's turned out to be. I don't know what will happen in the future with him. I just cannot see any way back for him." Latics' Thoughts on ITFC and the GameThere has been little discussion about Saturday's game. Most supporters expect it to follow the pattern of recent encounters, and pretty well all Latics expect their good run to continue. "It will be a tough game", "I'm going for another fairly scrappy win for us." There was one interesting Latic who didn't follow the crowd: "I'm afraid that our run will come to an end here. Not that Ipswich are that impressive, just that I can see the tiredness creeping in. I feared Wednesday would be the loss, but we turned it into a win. "Our run has been amazing but I'm going for Ipswich 2-1 Wigan. Surely, making the top six can't be this easy!" WebsitesThe busiest Latics message board is Vital Wigan.
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Callum McManaman
