Wigan Athletic: Can Martinez turn it around?

Nineties pop act D:Ream famously sang that Things Can Only Get Better. Unfortunately it looks as though things are going to get a whole lot worse for Wigan Athletic before they show any signs of getting better.

Humbled by newly promoted Blackpool on the opening day, then hit for six by the champions Chelsea, the last team Roberto Martinez wants to face right now is Tottenham Hotspur. Harry Redknapp’s men spanked nine past the hapless Latics last November and on current form nobody would be surprised if Wigan fell to that scoreline again.

Wigan finished last season with the worst away defence in the Premier League so you would have expected Martinez to have had a look at the problem over the summer, but by allowing Titus Bramble to leave for Sunderland the Spaniard has only made the problem worse. With 10 goals conceded in their opening two games, Wigan are not only odds on to have the worst defence overall but are now favourites for the drop.

Martinez’s style and tactics have long been questioned by a section of the Wigan fans and you have to wonder how the chairman Dave Whelan will react if they are on the end of another drubbing at Spurs. However, for the first 30 minutes or so against Chelsea they looked like the better team. McCarthy, N’Zogbia and Rodallega looked comfortable on the ball and were causing the visitors problems. Then Malouda pounced on a loose ball in the box and the game turned on its head. When Anelka scored twice just after the break you knew the game was over and it was a question of how many.

So how can a Premier League team defend so badly? It wasn’t that long ago that Chris Kirkland was being talked about as an England international. Gohuri, Figueroa and Alcaraz all play for their national team yet they are being made to look like schoolboys. Individually and collectively Wigan are making far too many mistakes and Martinez must get back to basics if hopes to shine some light on the Wigan fans.

On their day Wigan can turn anyone over. Last season Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool all left the DW with their tails between their legs. Then they go and get stuffed by teams like Portsmouth, Bolton and Blackpool! Martinez must find some sort of consistency in order to push the Latics on.

Looking at their fixture list, you have to wonder where their first win will come from. After Tottenham they entertain Steve Bruce’s Sunderland and free-spending Manchester City before travelling to Birmingham and hosting Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Of course Sunderland aren’t the greatest on their travels and there’s the edge of welcoming back their former manager and Bramble back to the DW, but Darren Bent must be looking at Wigan thinking he could get his first hat-trick of the season. Manchester City have their eyes on finishing in the top four at least so they will go out all guns blazing but they were held to a draw by Wigan last year, not forgetting that Sunderland felt the backlash of Wigan’s 9-1 defeat at Spurs. Birmingham do not lose games at St Andrews while Wolves look a much stronger outfit than last season.

So where does that leave Martinez? Dave Whelan has come out and said the Spaniard’s job is safe, but for how long? He has ploughed millions into his club and to see them being torn apart must be killing him inside.

Some people will argue that losing six to the free-scoring champions isn’t that bad. They may also point to the fact that losing to Blackpool was a freak result. That almost everything the Seasiders hit on the opening day went in. However, the table doesn’t lie and the fact that Wigan are rock bottom of the table, have failed to score and have a minus 10 goal difference already should be a major concern for everyone connected at the club.

And it’s not as if this sort of scoreline is a rare occurrence for Wigan. They have conceded four or more an astonishing 10 times under the stewardship of Martinez. Something simply has to give. Either the former Swansea boss tightens up at the back or he will soon be thrown on the managerial scrapheap.

· Calling all Wigan fans. How do you assess the start of the new season? Do you think Wigan have been truly awful or have they simply been unlucky? What do you think should happen to Roberto Martinez? Has he done enough to convince you that he can turn things around? What do you think the score will be at White Hart Lane? Whatever your views I’d love to hear from you.