Shaun Maloney talks up Wigan’s survival chances after vital victory at Stoke

Posted Wednesday, April 19, 2023 by PA

Delighted Wigan boss Shaun Maloney has no doubts his battling side can still avoid relegation.

Striker Will Keane claimed the only goal of the game for a first away win since October as the Latics stunned Stoke at the bet365 Stadium.

And with victory, which ended a run of three successive losses, no wonder Maloney was smiling after his team moved within five points of safety with three games still remaining.

“I couldn’t have asked any more from the players, it was a great performance,” said Maloney.

“Even at 1-0 up I like that we were aggressive and still creating chances. I hope people notice our defensive record has been so good since I arrived and that starts from the forward players.

“If we perform like we did tonight, you know this club, anything is possible.

“While it’s mathematically still on, you never know, you really don’t.

“We’ve just got to keep winning and see what happens. It’s going to be really tough but we’ve got to keep fighting until the end.

“After the disappointment of the weekend (against Blackpool), I thought tonight’s performance was immense from the first whistle.”

And Maloney hopes new investment next season can help them rediscover a feel-good factor having been in the doldrums for so long.

“For the level of investment we’ve invested this year, it’s high, really high,” added Maloney.

“But we don’t have in our group the type of players in really, really dangerous areas you really need in this league.

“When you get there, you have to hurt teams, you have to have more shots on goal, you have to create bigger chances.

“For the level of investment we have, those profiles of players aren’t there, and it’s not helped the squad.”

Frustrated Stoke boss Alex Neil was downbeat after his side slipped to a third successive home defeat.

“I didn’t think Wigan had too much to do to win the game, which is really frustrating,” admitted Neil.

“It’s disappointing and frustrating. I thought the whole night was flat, you could sense it in the atmosphere, you could see it on the pitch. It was slow.

“We started quite brightly and had two or three chances in the first few minutes. We should score at least one of them and if we do score one it probably changes the dynamic of the game, changes the dynamic of the atmosphere – but we didn’t and that led to more frustration.

“It’s difficult playing against a block. They sit in that shape and join from the sides and you can’t force the ball because they outnumber us in certain areas.

“I don’t think we’ve got a clear target man either. Late on in the game we changed our shape and went more direct but not to any real effect.

“There was one chance when Ki-Jana (Hoever) knocked back across but beyond that there weren’t any opportunities in the second half.

“I thought it was flat, I thought we lacked tempo in our game. We didn’t move it quick enough. It was just flat, frustrating performance.”