Team Focus: Wigan Hoping Caldwell Can Steady the Ship with Great Escape Unlikely

Gary Caldwell does not yet look like a manager burdened by stress but it should not take too long for the first grey hairs to appear. Malky Mackay’s replacement at Wigan, who are almost certain to be relegated from the Championship, turned 33 on Sunday, making him the youngest manager in English football.

He has quite the job on his hands. Defeat at Millwall, who they are level on points with in the relegation zone on Tuesday night would all but end their chances of staging a Lazarus-like comeback, though the south London club have a game in hand. They are seven points from safety with four games remaining, have only won consecutive games on two occasions this season and have not won at home since August.

Caldwell conceded that they will soon be planning for League One and it will take time to turn things around but the club have ensured that they view him as a long-term appointment. “We’ll try and win every game. There’s 12 points still to play for and we’ll see if it’s enough,” Caldwell said after his first match in charge ended in a 2-2 draw at Fulham. “But if I get that application, I’ll be happy whatever happens. This is a long process to get the club where I want it to be.”

David Sharpe, the 23-year-old chairman who replaced his grandfather, Dave Whelan, in March following the latter’s resignation, spoke of his desire for the team to return to the style of play they enjoyed so much success with under Roberto Martínez. The Wigan Way, as he called it himself.

Caldwell takes a similar view and there were some signs of that during the game at Craven Cottage on Friday night. They needed to win that to put pressure on Fulham and Rotherham, the two sides immediately above them. However Caldwell was impressed by their fighting spirit having come from behind twice and did a pretty good job putting a positive spin on things.

“It’s going to take a long time for it to be as good as we want it to be,” the manager added afterwards. “But I’m really proud of them. Barring two shots we didn’t react to, we controlled the game and played in the style I wanted.” That style is possession based. They enjoyed 67% of the ball against Fulham, though could only translate that into three attempts on target. Fulham managed the same despite the lesser share.

Yet it could be argued that Wigan have played a possession-based game for much of the season. Their overall average of 51.6% is the eighth highest in the division, but the problem has been that it has not translated into attempts on goal. A shots per game average of 12.3 is the fourth worst in the division.

A lot of their problems can be boiled down to an unsettled side. Thirty-seven players have appeared for them and only James Perch and Scott Carson have made more than 30 starts, though it should be factored in that they lost several key names earlier in the season. Shaun Maloney, James McArthur and Ben Watson were among those to start the campaign but move onto bigger things. And the likes of James McClean have already iterated their desire to move on in the summer.

Looking at the squad that started the campaign under Uwe Rosler and considering how close they went to beating QPR in the playoff semi-finals, nobody would have predicted relegation. But then came Rosler’s departure, the contentious appointment of Mackay and Whelan’s subsequent misdemeanours in the media.

The wheels came off dramatically both on and off the pitch and though there is a hint that Caldwell’s appointment will see them steady the ship, it is too late to maintain their Championship status. “Crazy” was how he described his first few days as a manager and that is before the hard work of rebuilding in the summer begins. They are long way away from trips to Wembley and beating Manchester City.

Are Wigan doomed to relegation or can Caldwell inspire a great escape? Let us know in the comments below