Maloney’s team didn’t turn up

• Wigan Athletic produced one of their most abject displays against Peterborough United and were defeated 1-0 at the Weston Homes Stadium.
• Latics were without top scorer Thelo Aasgaard who has been transferred to Luton Town for a fee believed to be in excess of £3m.
• The only goal of a poor quality game came in the 18th minute when Tayo Edun crossed and Mahamadou Susoho found the net with a diving header which went in off the post.
• A toothless Latics failed to register a single shot on target during the 97 minutes of play.
• Latics remain in 16th place and Peterborough are in 18th place in the League One table.

Shaun Maloney made one change from the victory against Bristol Rovers, with Will Goodwin returning to the starting line-up. 

Latics had an attempt at goal practically from the kick off, but unfortunately Joe Hungbo blazed high and wide from the edge of the box.

After a scrappy opening period the hosts took the lead on 19 minutes as Edun crossed for Susoho to head in off the post.

The Posh were dominating possession and Latics were struggling to build any kind of momentum. Chris Conn-Clarke fired a free-kick over from 25-yards for the hosts on 36 minutes.

Maloney was clearly getting frustrated on the touchline and the Tics manager was given a yellow card by referee Carl Brook on 40 minutes.

The visitors struggled to string more than two passes together and there seemed to be  complete lack of energy and drive.

Latics had clearly been affected by the absence of Aasgaard, but this was no excuse for such a terrible first half display. 

Maloney made a triple change at half time, with Jonny Smith, Harry McHugh and Jon Mellish replacing Hungbo, Norburn and Robinson.

The visitors did look a little more energised at the beginning of the second half with Jonny Smith beating his man and putting in a dangerous cross.

Latics did almost equalise in bizarre fashion as Goodwin closed down Nicholas Bilokapic’s kicked clearance and the ball hit the Oxford loanee and flew inches wide.

But Latics second half pressure faded and the hosts then went close on three occasions. 

Ricky-Jade Jones was denied by a brilliant last ditch Will Aimson challenge. Tickle then dived acrobatically to his right to deny Conn-Clarke with a strike from distance. Tickle then had to be alert to punch the ball from under his own crossbar from the resulting corner.

Maloney’s men huffed and puffed but they failed to create any attacking threat. They couldn’t even muster a serious strike on target in the whole 97 minutes. 

Overview

This was a mind-bogglingly awful performance by Latics against a team who had not won in nine games and were extremely low in confidence after a 5-1 mauling by Lincoln City at the weekend.

Very few Latics’ players emerged with any credit from the Weston Homes Stadium. Only Sam Tickle, Dale Taylor and Jonny Smith could be said to have had acceptable performances.

Maloney will take a lot of criticism but the players should also take a close look at themselves as this was professionally unacceptable. 

The departure of Aasgaard was probably inevitable given his £3m release clause and owner Mike Danson’s decision to only fund the club at a financially sustainable level. 

Aasgaard’s transfer may have affected confidence but this is no excuse for the team’s awful performance on the night. 

Latics have been inconsistent this season but they had enough quality players on the pitch to overcome a young and inexperienced Posh team.

Maloney had hoped Latics could put together a winning run and move up the table, but this performance and the recent defeat to Burton shows that they will continue to struggle at the wrong end of the table.

A replacement for Aasgaard before the transfer deadline is now essential if they are to avoid a relegation scrap. Latics recent activity in the transfer market has been less than satisfactory, so it is imperative they get it right this time.

Post match comments

Speaking to the media, Maloney expressed that the defeat was down to their start in the League One fixture. 

“The game was lost in the first half,” he said. 

“I can accept how we played in the second half, but we didn’t create enough for the areas we got in.

“I didn’t like the first half. It’s not been the easiest period today, so I don’t blame the players.

“There are some things that we had to do tactically today that didn’t work in the first half. They were definitely better than us in the first half and that was where the game was lost.

“Normally I can be quite hard on the players, but today, I understand why the first half was a bit disjointed. 

“In the second half, they showed a different intent and understanding of what we wanted them to do.”

Shortly after the game, Thelo Aasgaard’s permanent switch to Championship side Luton Town was confirmed. Maloney was naturally disappointed to lose a player of Aasgaard’s calibre and expressed the importance of moving on quickly as a squad. 

“I understand that 18 months ago, this was the plan I put in front of the owner and I thought I could do that.

“I thought we had good players and I could help the Club to get to the point where we’re breaking even or being self-sustainable, but it still hurts.

“It still hurts when you lose one of your best players. He’s an amazing guy, and I’ve enjoyed watching his development over the last two years.

“It’s tough news for us, but congratulations to him. We’ll move on pretty quickly as a squad.

“It’s my job to develop the other players in the team now, and give the fans better performances than what we did tonight.”

Today marked the Gaffer’s two-year anniversary as Wigan Athletic Manager, and Maloney revealed his full focus is on helping the Club progress and move in the right direction. 

“It’s a privilege and I am incredibly proud to be the Manager here. I understand where we are – and I think that’s been the hardest part of this season.

“I knew these moments were coming and I knew what the Club were striving for financially. Now we have to move the Club forward and move the team forward.

“We’ve done incredibly well to completely change the finances from what they were – and now my big job is moving the Club forward.”

Player ratings

Player ratings courtesy of Whoscored.com