Wigan Athletic 1 - 0 Coventry City

Sky Blues fall to narrow defeat against league leaders



Coventry’s hopes of reviving their play-off ambitions were foiled at the DW Stadium as Will Grigg’s 20th League One goal of the season saw Wigan surge four points clear at the top.

The Sky Blues gave at least as good as they got in the first half but were on the back foot for most of the second as Reice Charles-Cook saved Grigg’s penalty to keep them in contention.

Adam Armstrong replaced Jacob Murphy up front in the only change from the starting line-up at Gillingham but City were forced into a late shuffle on the bench to avoid exceeding their maximum match-day allowance of five loan players – newly arrived Bulgarian Vladimir Gadzhev taking over from Norwich asset James Maddison.

It took a perfectly-timed Martin tackle to cut out top scorer Grigg in the opening seconds but City quickly found their stride and the newly beardless Vincelot wasn’t far adrift with a spectacular volley from Bigirimana’s deep diagonal.

As in the season opener the game was an open, competitive affair – a bit too competitive when Daniels was lucky to escape uncarded for a wild touchline lunge at Vincelot.

Wildschut’s powerful runs down the left looked Wigan’s prime threat – one run from deep in his own half foiled by a last-ditch Phillips block – but Jaaskelainen was forced to make the first real save of the game when he went full length to turn Fleck’s skidding 20-yarder round the post.

Jones was just unable to cash in when Warnock’s missed header gave him a run into the box but Wigan counter-attacked from the subsequent corner – McAleny firing a free-kick into the wall when Fleck felled Wildschut five yards outside the area.

Tudgay went close from 20 yards but as the end-to-end pattern continued, Charles-Cook had to move sharply to grab McAleny’s deflected shot.

Kicking towards their own fans in the second half, City made an enterprising start, Jones’s deflected shot looping into Jaaskelainen’s hands.

But Wigan then conjured up a spell of sustained pressure, Charles-Cook turning away Grigg’s dangerous low cross, McAlaney stabbing a shot wide of the far post and Power seeing his effort charged down.

Cole replaced Bigirimana nine minutes into the second half, the Newcastle man looking less than fully fit as he walked off, but the goal that had been coming duly arrived in the 57th minute as Power fired over a low cross from the left and Grigg stabbed it first-time into the roof of the net.

Cole was booked for a foul on Daniels that was far less dangerous than the Wigan man’s first-half hack at Vincelot before Mowbray revamped his attack by sending on Murphy and Fortune and reverting to his favoured 4-2-3-1 formation.

Wigan had a golden opportunity to wrap up the points in the 66th minute when McAleny – eventually – went down as Fleck slid in but Charles-Cook dived to his left to block Grigg’s low but undercooked penalty.

On the back foot for most of the half, City broke well down the right only for former Wigan striker Fortune to curl his shot wide of the far post, much to the home fans’ delight.

The pitch was treacherous by this stage and with the home crowd howling at every opportunity Cole was lucky to escape a second yellow when Power made a melodramatic meal of a marginally mistimed challenge and Ricketts was incensed when Morsey threw a tantrum.