Wigan Athletic ~ General Chat & Latest News

[Freddy Adu]

FT Tottenham H. 4 - 0 Wigan Athletic

[Freddy Adu]

FT		Tottenham H. [4 - 0] Wigan Athletic
13'	[1 - 0]	J. Jenas
26'	[2 - 0]	J. Jenas
35'	[3 - 0]	A. Lennon
53'			J. Skoko
64'			P. Scharner
72'	[4 - 0]	D. Bent

[Freddy Adu]

Spurs boss Ramos delighted with "exceptional" Berbatov

Tottenham boss Juande Ramos was delighted with Dimitar Berbatov after his performance in their victory over Wigan.

"He played exceptionally, the same as the team," said the Spaniard. "Even though he did not score a goal he played very well.

"He has said that he wants to stay. Obviously he is a player who, when his team are winning, is going to be happy.

"I hope until the end of the season he will make a decision and hopefully he will stay."

[Freddy Adu]

Ramos delighted as Spurs thump Wigan

Juande Ramos' Tottenham thrashed relegation rivals Wigan Athletic 4-0 to lift themselves away from the dropzone.

Jermaine Jenas opened the scoring with a tap-in after Robbie Keane's fine work on the byline, then Dimitar Berbatov took centre stage.

He passed to Jenas to round Chris Kirkland for the second, after 26 minutes.

Before the break it was 3-0. Berbatov cushioned a huge Paul Robinson clearance before nonchalantly laying the ball back for Aaron Lennon to volley home.

Darren Bent came off the bench to add the fourth, then Berbatov was denied the goal his work deserved when his effort came off the post.

"We are happy with the scoreline but the thing I'm more happy with is three of the four matches since I've been here have been clean sheets," Ramos said.

"Once you get that clean sheet, players play much better and have more confidence.

"I can't give an opinion of Spurs before I arrived because I didn't see those matches - but my opinion is that a team needs to be attacking well but you need to do well defensively for solidity. You're going to perform better."

Birmingham's defeat meant Spurs climbed three places.

"I'm especially satisfied with the three points because sometimes you can get three points and the teams behind you win, and you don't really go up the table," Ramos added.

[Freddy Adu]

Wigan Ath. vs Man. City

Premier League 2007/2008 | Campeonato | Day 15

Wigan Ath. Man. City

Date 2007-12-01 City Wigan Stadium JJB Stadium Referee

[St. Anger]

We're not going to have Cesc in the squad for this one... but we're going to whip them big time.

[Freddy Adu]

Kilbane backs ex-Wigan boss Jewell for Ireland

Wigan Athletic midfielder Kevin Kilbane has called on the Republic of Ireland to make Paul Jewell new manager.

Of the current players in the Ireland squad, Kilbane knows Jewell well as the winger/full-back was signed by the former Latics boss for £2million from Everton in August last year.

Although Kilbane has not spoken with Jewell regarding the post, he does speak highly of the 43-year-old.

"Whether or not he wants it, I don't know," remarked Kilbane.

"But he signed me for Wigan, and I always got on well with him, so we will have to wait and see.

"Last season it all came down to the last game against Sheffield United, and probably his Wigan career will be judged on that.

"Prior to that he did so well, taking the club up from the old Second Division and winning promotion to the Premier League.

"He then kept them up, took them to the League Cup (final), so he has a good track record hasn't he?

"On the training ground, he was a forward-thinking coach, and he is a good man-motivator.

"But he's not indicated he wants the job. It's all speculation at the moment, with a number of top-quality candidates mentioned.

"I'm sure it will be sorted soon, and it will be good when it is."

[Freddy Adu]

Wigan's Kilbane rules out Ireland retirement

Wigan Athletic midfielder Kevin Kilbane has dismissed talk of retiring from the Republic of Ireland setup.

"I'm definitely carrying on," insisted Kilbane. "I'm 30 years of age. It's not as if I'm 35 or something like that.

"I feel as though I've still something to give, whether it be in or around the squad, I don't know what. We'll wait and see."

[Freddy Adu]

Valencia unsettled at Wigan

Luis Antonio Valencia is unsettled at Wigan Athletic.

The People says Ecuador star Valencia is restless at the JJB because of their poor results.

He has had injury problems since Paul Jewell brought him from Recreativo Huelva but has shown flashes of ability and could find a bigger club here or abroad.

[scotttttttttttttt]

go wigan!

[Freddy Adu]

Arsenal's Last 5 games..... 5 Wins...
Wigan's Last 5 Games....0 Wins...
Who will win this one

[carpediem33880]

lets go wigan! lol

no shot in hell of wigan pulling it off

[Freddy Adu]

I actually think that Wigan might win{In Borat Voice}.....................................NOT

[Freddy Adu]

Prem Preview: Arsenal - Wigan Athletic
What: English Premier League
Who: Arsenal (1st EPL, 30/36 pts) v Wigan (19th EPL, 8/39 points)
When: Saturday, 24 November, Kick-off: 15:00 GMT
Where: Emirates Stadium, London

Bruce’s Bow Delayed
When Steve Bruce was named as the new Wigan manager it looked as if his first game in charge would be this testing assignment away to League leaders Arsenal.

But his confirmation as the Latics' boss was delayed when he and former club Birmingham had to reach a compromise over a reported £225,000 image rights dispute.

So Wigan have confirmed that Bruce will not take over until Monday, after the Arsenal game, because of lack of preparation time. But he will be at the Emirates to watch his new charges.

Wigan chairman Dave Whelan explained: "Steve will be on the bench for half the game on Saturday and in the stand for the other half.

"Frank will be running the team tomorrow he has taken all the training this week. Steve will then travel back with the team and take full control on Monday morning."

Whelan added that Eric Black, Bruce's assistant at Birmingham, will join him at the JJB Stadium in "two or three weeks." Black is caretaker manager at St Andrews following Bruce's departure, and Birmingham chairman David Gold is adamant that he "will do everything possible" to prevent Black from moving to Wigan.

However, Whelan told the BBC: "He [Black] has stayed with Birmingham because they want someone to run the team and he has promised to stay there for two to three weeks.

"Steve has agreed to that and he is a man of his word. Hopefully Eric will be joining Steve here in a fortnight to three weeks. We've agreed a contract with him but obviously we'll have to wait and help Birmingham as best we can."

A Contrast In Fortunes

What Barlow is up against in his last game is likely to be formidable. Bruce will observe first-hand how Wigan can cope with the challenge of tackling a side defending top spot and the longest current unbeaten run in the Premier League: 19 matches.

Arsenal have won nine of their 12 Premier League matches so far, and scored in every one, conceding just 10 goals in total while scoring 27. They will be looking to rack up their 250th Premiership win under manager Arsene Wenger, and to maintain an unbeaten streak in all competitions that now stands at 27 games.

In contrast, Wigan are striving to avoid dropping to the bottom of the League. They will be trying to end the longest current winless sequence in the top-flight - 10 games - and the longest run of consecutive defeats: seven. Of their 13 matches to date, Wigan have lost nine, scoring only 10 goals along the way and conceding 23.

The contrast in fortunes between the teams is underlined by Arsenal's home record and Wigan's away. The Gunners have won six, drawn one, lost none at the Emirates. Away from the JJB, Wigan have won none, drawn one and lost six.

Interestingly too, this will be Arsenal's 21st game of the season so far in league and cup, which is more than any other Premier League club has played. Wigan have played just 14, and no top-flight club has played fewer.

In their last outings, Arsenal were impressively stylish in beating Reading 3-1 at the Madejski, while Wigan were abject, crashing to a 4-0 defeat at the home of Arsenal's arch-rivals Tottenham, a game in which they mustered a solitary shot on target. That was Barlow's first game as caretaker following the sacking of Chris Hutchings, and it was not hard to see Whelan had decided a managerial change was imperative.

They haven't won in 11 games in all competitions, drawing two and losing nine, and they've failed to score in five of the last six League games, netting only four goals in nine matches. Bruce will have his work cut out in his second stint at the JJB.

Goal.com - England - Prem Preview: Arsenal - Wigan Athletic

[Freddy Adu]

Arsenal v Wigan

Premiership leaders Arsenal have shown some metal recently, now having played some of the better sides and still remaining unbeaten. The young guns had been tipped to run out of steam when coming to play the likes of United and Liverpool, but are now proving to be genuine title contenders.

Each player is performing well, ensuring we witness breathtaking, fluent football week in week out. Arsenal do have some tough clashes coming up during December, and they may struggle during a heavy schedule which sees them play 10 games during the festive month. But they should easily beat Wigan this weekend.

New boss Steve Bruce has the pleasure of heading to the Emirates for his first game in charge of Wigan. Of course his mission is clear, he must keep Wigan in the Premiership. Injuries have meant Wigan are searching for their first win in eleven league games.

Bruce’s job will by no means be easy, but if he instills the sort of courageous and battling spirit into the squad, like done with Birmingham, the Latics will once again become a hard force to break down. But that will all come in time, with January set to be very important in terms of transfers.

This isn’t really a test for Arsenal, a team who are playing some mesmerizing, heavenly football in all competitions. In fact, Wenger may have a chance to rest some key players after the international break. I cannot see Bruce making too much of an impact after only a week in charge, therefore Arsenal will be favourite’s to win.

Prediction: Confortable For The Gunners

[Brasil]

HT		Arsenal [0 - 0] Wigan Athletic
16'			M. Brown
Copyright © 1998-2007 LiveScore.com

[Brasil]

Goal Arsenal!

[Brasil]

88`

[Brasil]

Goal Arsenal again!!!!

[Brasil]

2-0

[Brasil]

88'		Arsenal [2 - 0] Wigan Athletic
16'			M. Brown
54'			A. Granqvist
72'			M. Bent
73'		W. Gallas	E. Heskey
84'	[1 - 0]	W. Gallas
85'	[2 - 0]	T. Rosicky
Copyright © 1998-2007 LiveScore.com

[Brasil]

FT		Arsenal [2 - 0] Wigan Athletic
16'			M. Brown
54'			A. Granqvist
72'			M. Bent
73'		W. Gallas	E. Heskey
84'	[1 - 0]	W. Gallas
85'	[2 - 0]	T. Rosicky
Copyright © 1998-2007 LiveScore.com

[Freddy Adu]

Lucky, Lucky, Lucky Arsenal.

[Freddy Adu]

2

Premier League Final - Emirates Stadium Attendance: 60,126 Arsenal 2 - 0 Wigan William Gallas (83) Tomas Rosicky (85)

0

[Freddy Adu]

Match Stats
	Arsenal	Wigan
Shots (on Goal)	13(6)	7(2)
Fouls	9	17
Corner Kicks	7	3
Offsides	4	3
Time of Possession	65%	35%
Yellow Cards	1	4
Red Cards	0	0
Saves	2	4

[Freddy Adu]

Match Information Stadium: Emirates Stadium, England
Attendance: 60,126
Match Time: 10:00 ET
Referee: Peter Walton

[Freddy Adu]

Teams
Arsenal	Wigan
24 Manuel Almunia	Michael Pollitt 12
22 Gaël Clichy	Emmerson Boyce 17
27 Emmanuel Eboue	Titus Bramble 19
10 William Gallas	Andreas Granqvist 4
3 Bacary Sagna	Salomon Olembe 20
5 Kolo Toure	Paul Scharner 18
8 Lassana Diarra	Michael Brown 11
15 Denilson	Kevin Kilbane 8
7 Tomas Rosicky	Jason Koumas 10
25 Emmanuel Adebayor	Denny Landzaat 14
32 Theo Walcott	Marcus Bent 23
Substitutes
1 Jens Lehmann	Chris Kirkland 1
6 Philippe Senderos	Fitz Hall 5
17 Alexandre Song	Antoine Sibierski 6
26 Nicklas Bendtner	Josip Skoko 24
9 Da Silva Eduardo	Emile Heskey 9
Substitutions
D Eduardo for E Eboue (68)	E Heskey for S Olembe (68)
N Bendtner for T Walcott (79)	A Sibierski for M Bent (84)
	J Skoko for P Scharner (90)
Yellow Cards
William Gallas (72)	Michael Brown (15)
	Andreas Granqvist (53)
	Marcus Bent (72)
	Emile Heskey (73)
· Club Rosters: Arsenal | Wigan

[Freddy Adu]

Arsenal 2-0 Wigan: Gallas defies stubborn Wigan
ESPNsoccernet - England - Arsenal v Wigan Report

[Freddy Adu]

ARSENAL 2-0 WIGAN ATHLETIC

Arsenal extended their lead at the top of the Barclays Premier League with a 2-0 win over Wigan. For large spells, though, the Gunners - now unbeaten for 28 matches - had been frustrated by a determined Wigan side, who will have new manager Steve Bruce in charge from Monday.

[Freddy Adu]

To read the full match report click here