Can Wigan survive?
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This club may be unfashionable, but they certainly have more than enough funds. Can they survive the Premiership and make an impression, or will they return to the Championship after one season?
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Since Southampton was relegated, I've always wanted to support an underdog.
Well, see how Wigan shows...u never know... -
i rather support west ham.too bad all their stars left.imagine a team of ferdinand,lampard,cole,carrick and kanoute etc..but i guess their talent was never really going to bloom if they had stayed on there though.
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Wigan Athletic manager Paul Jewell has issued a rallying cry to his players, urging them to prove wrong the critics who expect to see them make an immediate return to the Championship.
The Latics' Barclays Premiership campaign begins on August 14 at home to champions Chelsea and Jewell wants the tone to be set that day.
"When people ask my opinion I say Wigan are one of the favourites to go down on the mere fact that is what happens (more often than not to promoted teams)," said Jewell.
"But people have written us off without ever seeing us play or what we are about. That is cheap. People don't respect us. People are writing disparaging things about us.
"I don't like that and I'd love to stuff a few people's words down their throats.
"It is very exciting times but I don't want us to be going out there on August 14 with our autograph books and wanting to swap shirts.
"We will respect Chelsea before the game but when it starts it is every man for himself."
Jewell wants to change Wigan from a club admired for its remarkable rise to the Barclays Premiership to an established top-flight entity that strikes fear into the leading sides in England.
"We will be everyone's favourite second team this season because everyone thinks they can beat us and we are not a threat - maybe one day we will be disliked," Jewell told Radio Five Live's Sportsweek programme.
"We have that image of pies and flat caps - but I donÂ’t want to play up to that stereotype. I want to take Wigan forward and the best way we can do that is with football.
"Wigan is a great place and it's buzzing at the moment because the team is in the Premiership.
"The club has had a meteoric rise. Twenty years ago the club was in the Northern Premier. This is a chance to prove all the people wrong."
But it will take time. Jewell has missed out on a number of transfer targets during the summer, including England midfielder Scott Parker.
Wigan offered Chelsea £10million for Parker but the midfielder chose Newcastle United.
Jewell was not at all surprised, but is determined to change the way Wigan are viewed.
"We bid £10million, Peter Kenyon accepted it but if I had the chance as a player to go to Newcastle, Everton or Tottenham I'd go to one of the other three before Wigan.
"Wigan is about being part of something moving forward. It's a new adventure. No-one thought Wigan would be in the Premiership. But we are there on merit.
"We are a forward-thinking club that can't go and buy current internationals playing for England - but we can get better players and gradually build a squad up that way."
Hopefully in the 20 days before we face Chelsea we will get three or four more new faces in."
But it us unlikely Jewell will bid for Manchester City midfielder Joey Barton, who was sent home early from the club's pre-season trip to Thailand following an off-field incident.
"Barton is obviously a good player," said Jewell.
"I don't know what's gone on over there. He is a good player but not one I've thought of at the moment." - premierleague.com -
I'll be damn surprise if they manage to stay out from the bottom three this coming season .
They'll go down , probable by December 2005 .
Looking at Norwich , Southampton and Palace , ie , the players they had , and looking at Wigan's , it's hard for me not to pick them for the drop .
Paul Jewell is good for Div.One , not the Premiership . -
they will survuve i THINK..... their first match may be a DRAW
with chelsea -
It depends,cuz they are spending alot of money..
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we shall see....
(go Wigan
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Stephane Henchoz is due to sign for Barclays Premiership newcomers Wigan in the next 24 hours after passing a medical.
The former Liverpool and Blackburn Rovers defender joined the Latics on trial last week after being released by Celtic and has impressed manager Paul Jewell enough to be offered a deal.
The 30-year-old will become JewellÂ’s fourth signing of the summer after Rotherham goalkeeper Mike Pollitt and defenders Pascal Chimbonda and Ryan Taylor from Bastia and Tranmere respectively.
Henchoz joined Celtic last season after failing to win a place in Rafael BenitezÂ’s first team at Liverpool.
He had been a key member of the side under previous boss Gerard Houllier and starred in the 2001 cup treble success.
Henchoz first came to England when he joined Blackburn from Hamburg in 1997. He moved to Liverpool in a £3.5million deal two years later. -
unlucky wigan lost 0-1 to chelsea.
she should have won it even early in the first half. chelsea sucks. -
Can!!! if yesterday performance was anything to go by. Wigan was deathfinitely on top in the first-half and alan mahon had a great chance to score. The french ppl of chelsea was sh1tty. Drogba KNS again.
Camara, Damien Francis, Chimbonda and de zeuuw all had an exceptional game. -
dont understand why chelsea keep signing midfielders. their attack is not fluent at all.
even though they wont the premiership i dont find they attacking play any fun to watch.
when arsenal or man u won the premiership they attack was so damn good. -
I think is sign buay tio lah!! all the top strikers want to stay at their club. they want to sign shevchenko, boh. Want to sign gilardino, he go to ac milan.Originally posted by dragg:dont understand why chelsea keep signing midfielders. their attack is not fluent at all.
even though they wont the premiership i dont find they attacking play any fun to watch.
when arsenal or man u won the premiership they attack was so damn good. -
what about owen?Originally posted by The man who was death:I think is sign buay tio lah!! all the top strikers want to stay at their club. they want to sign shevchenko, boh. Want to sign gilardino, he go to ac milan.
he is cheap at 11 million pounds, young and has lots of pace too. -
dunno why only newcastle want himOriginally posted by dragg:what about owen?
he is cheap at 11 million pounds, young and has lots of pace too.
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Cos owen is worth less than 6m pounds?Originally posted by The man who was death:dunno why only newcastle want him -
he is better than many strikers in the premiership, many costing more than 10 million pounds.Originally posted by Nelstar:Cos owen is worth less than 6m pounds?
i feel many coaches are biased against english players. -
Think owen's play style is too predictable liao. Shevchenko and Ronaldo are considered more all-rounded players, people who can shoot, head, tackle, pass, create, dribble, sell..... Owen's not.Originally posted by Nelstar:Cos owen is worth less than 6m pounds? -
the main reason why chelsea is not going for owen i guess is because he hardly play defence if the need arises.Originally posted by scrub:Think owen's play style is too predictable liao. Shevchenko and Ronaldo are considered more all-rounded players, people who can shoot, head, tackle, pass, create, dribble, sell..... Owen's not.
but i feel mourihno is over-rated. -
ya. Think you're right to say that too.Originally posted by dragg:the main reason why chelsea is not going for owen i guess is because he hardly play defence if the need arises.
but i feel mourihno is over-rated.
Think mourinho is maciam a perfectionist, who is looking down at other clubs. He's trying to win all 38 games by 1-0. -
you mean peter's crouch?Originally posted by dragg:he is better than many strikers in the premiership, many costing more than 10 million pounds.
i feel many coaches are biased against english players.
or James Beattie?
Milan Baros is someone I would sell if I was Rafael Benitez...
Good English strikers:
Wayne Rooney
Jermaine Defoe
Alan Shearer
Michael Owen? He need to use his head sometimes.. I mean it. -
Cos they need a credible striker to take over when Shearer retires.Originally posted by The man who was death:dunno why only newcastle want him -
Wigan was just plain unlucky.
They shld have won the game.
Chelsea was struggling thru out the match.
Drogba,Robben,Duff all played like shit.
And they are using the tactics they used last season to win Barcelona.
2 players to block the keeper's view as a corner is whipped in and John Terry to head it in.
Damn Chelsea. -
While Chelsea made Wigan look good.. still, the men of Wigan Ath did tactically well to keep the Chelsea at bay until the dying minutes.
In football, it's not over till it's over. They have to know it's 100% concentration all the time. Lose that and you will give World-class striker like Crespo a decent chance to score.
They can still survive the Premiership IF they are consistent with their performance for the whole season. A draw is as good as a win at times. Wigan need a really decent striker to get goals. -
On the other hand, WH can't pay as well like the Chelseas or Spurs.Originally posted by stellazio:i rather support west ham.too bad all their stars left.imagine a team of ferdinand,lampard,cole,carrick and kanoute etc..but i guess their talent was never really going to bloom if they had stayed on there though.
Good thing abt WH is that, they tends to have a good crop of youngsters ready to move forward with the club. I watched abit on the match on WH against Blackburn and I tght Anton Ferdinand, Rio Fredinand's younger bro did exceptionally well. He could be the future of England's Centre-back.