2005–06 Wigan Athletic F.C. season

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Wigan Athletic
2005–06 season
Chairman Dave Whelan
Manager Paul Jewell
Premier League 10th
FA Cup Fourth round
League Cup Runners-up
Top goalscorer League:
Henri Camara (12)
All:
Jason Roberts (14)
Highest home attendance 25,023 (vs. Liverpool, Premier League, 11 February)
Lowest home attendance 3,346 (vs. Bournemouth, League Cup, 20 September)
Home colours
Away colours

The 2005–06 Wigan Athletic F.C. season was the club's 28th season in the Football League and their inaugural season in the Premier League, following their promotion from the Championship the season before.

Despite starting the season as one of the favourites for relegation,[1][2] Wigan managed to exceed expectations with a nine-match unbeaten run early in the season. The club eventually finished the season in tenth place.

Wigan also reached the final of the League Cup - the club's first ever appearance in a major cup final. They lost the match 4–0 to Manchester United.

Background

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Prior to the club's promotion to the Premier League, Wigan Athletic were a team that had spent the majority of their history in the third and fourth tier of English football since the club's election into the Football League in 1978. In 1995, when the club was playing football in Division Three and struggling due to financial difficulties and declining attendances, Wigan was taken over by local businessman Dave Whelan, who ambitiously proclaimed that Wigan would be playing Premier League football within ten years. With the help of Whelan's financial backing, the club rapidly rose through the divisions, gaining promotion to the second tier of English football for the first time in 2003, and culminating with their promotion to the Premier League on the final day of the 2004–05 Championship season. Despite this success, the club was predicted by many to be relegated straight back down to the Championship, including The Times newspaper, who suggested Wigan "will need a miracle if they are to survive".[3]

Pre-season

On 7 July, Greater Manchester Police issued the club with a court summons over an unpaid bill of approximately £270,000 for policing the club's football matches. The police had also threatened to withdraw their services if the club failed to settle the debt before 1 August.[4] Chairman Dave Whelan later agreed to pay the bill in order to prevent the cancellation of fixtures in the club's first Premier League season, but would continue to resolve the matter in court.[5]

The squad began their pre-season preparations with a training camp in Denmark. They played two friendlies against local opposition behind closed doors, and won both games 5–0.[6] Midfielder Jimmy Bullard also agreed a new three-year contract with the club, ending speculation that he would leave before the end of the transfer window.[7]

Date Opponent Result Venue Scorers Attendance Match Report
27 July 2005 Preston North End 1–1 Away McCulloch 9' -
30 July 2005 Macclesfield Town 0–4 Away Johansson 39', Bullard 57', Teale 81', Mahon 87' 1,024
2 August 2005 Morecambe 0–1 Away Ellington 77' -
3 August 2005 Accrington Stanley 1–1 Away McCulloch 74' -
6 August 2005 Boavista 1–0 Home Ellington 21' (pen) -

Premier League

August

Wigan's opening league game was at home against reigning Premier League champions Chelsea. The home side played well and despite missing opportunities to score themselves, it looked as though they would manage an impressive draw, but were denied by a spectacular injury time winner from Hernan Crespo. After losing 1–0 to Charlton Athletic on 20 August, Wigan's next game was a crucial home match against relegation rivals Sunderland. Wigan won the match 1–0, their first ever Premier League win, with Jason Roberts scoring the goal – a penalty which had been awarded within the first 15 seconds of the game.

September

On 10 September, Wigan came from behind to beat West Bromwich Albion 2–1, claiming their first Premier League win away from home, and scoring their first Premier League goals from open play. Following a draw in the next game against Middlesbrough, Wigan played their first cup game of the season against Bournemouth in the League Cup, winning the match 1–0. On 24 September, Wigan extended their unbeaten run with a 1–0 away against Everton. As a result of the club's impressive form, manager Paul Jewell received the September Manager of the Month award.[8]

Date Opponent Result Venue Scorers Attendance Match Report
14 August 2005 Chelsea 0–1 Home 23,575 Report
20 August 2005 Charlton Athletic 1–0 Away 23,453 Report
27 August 2005 Sunderland 1–0 Home Roberts 2' (pen) 17,223 Report
10 September 2005 West Bromwich Albion 1–2 Away Connolly 40', Bullard 90+2' 25,617 Report
18 September 2005 Middlesbrough 1–1 Home Camara 68' 16,641 Report
24 September 2005 Everton 0–1 Away Francis 47' 37,189 Report
2 October 2005 Bolton Wanderers 2–1 Home Camara 48', McCulloch 63' 20,553 Report
15 October 2005 Newcastle United 1–0 Home Roberts 40' 22,374 Report
22 October 2005 Aston Villa 0–2 Away Hughes 32' (og), Mahon 82' 32,294 Report
29 October 2005 Fulham 1–0 Home Chimbonda 90+2' 17,266 Report
5 November 2005 Portsmouth 0–2 Away Chimbonda 48', Roberts 79' 19,102 Report
19 November 2005 Arsenal 2–3 Home Camara 28', Bullard 45' 25,004 Report
26 November 2005 Tottenham Hotspur 1–2 Home McCulloch 88' 22,611 Report
3 December 2005 Liverpool 3–0 Away 44,098 Report
10 December 2005 Chelsea 1–0 Away 42,060 Report
14 December 2005 Manchester United 4–0 Away 67,793 Report
17 December 2005 Charlton Athletic 3–0 Home Camara 9', 51', 63' 17,074 Report
26 December 2005 Manchester City 4–3 Home Roberts 11', 45', McCulloch 23', Camara 71' 25,017 Report
28 December 2005 West Ham United 0–2 Away Roberts 43', Camara 45' 34,131 Report
31 December 2005 Blackburn Rovers 0–3 Home 20,639 Report
2 January 2006 Birmingham City 2–0 Away 29,189 Report
15 January 2006 West Bromwich Albion 0–1 Home 17,421 Report
21 January 2006 Middlesbrough 2–3 Away Roberts 2', Thompson 29', Mellor 90+3' 27,208 Report
31 January 2006 Everton 1–1 Home Scharner 45' 21,731 Report
4 February 2006 Bolton Wanderers 1–1 Away Johansson 77' 25,854 Report
11 February 2006 Liverpool 0–1 Home 25,023 Report
19 February 2006 Tottenham Hotspur 2–2 Away Johansson 10', 67' 35,676 Report
6 March 2006 Manchester United 1–2 Home Scharner 60' 23,574 Report
11 March 2006 Sunderland 0–1 Away Camara 8' 31,194 Report
18 March 2006 Manchester City 0–1 Away McCulloch 55' 42,444 Report
25 March 2006 West Ham United 1–2 Home McCulloch 45+1' 18,736 Report
3 April 2006 Blackburn Rovers 1–1 Away Roberts 53' 20,410 Report
8 April 2006 Birmingham City 1–1 Home Johansson 49' 18,669 Report
15 April 2006 Newcastle United 3–1 Away Bullard 5' 52,302 Report
18 April 2006 Aston Villa 3–2 Home Bullard 25', Camara 56', 60' 17,330 Report
24 April 2006 Fulham 1–0 Away 17,149 Report
29 April 2006 Portsmouth 1–2 Home Camara 34' 21,126 Report
7 May 2006 Arsenal 4–2 Away Scharner 10', Thompson 33' 38,359 Report

FA Cup

Date Round Opponent Result Venue Scorers Attendance Match Report
7 January 2006 Third Round Leeds United 1–1 Home Connolly 47' 10,980 [ Report]
17 January 2006 Third Round (replay) Leeds United 3–3 (aet) Away Johansson 24', Roberts 50', 103' 15,243 [ Report]
(Wigan Athletic win 4–2 on penalties)
28 January 2006 Fourth Round Manchester City 1–0 Away 30,811 [ Report]

League Cup

Jason Roberts scored a late goal against Arsenal to take Wigan to their first ever major cup final.

Wigan entered the League Cup in the second round and were drawn against Bournemouth. Manager Paul Jewell made 11 changes to the side, with several players making their debuts. Bournemouth, suffering from an injury crisis, could only name four substitutes, but held Wigan until Jason Roberts broke the deadlock four minutes from time to send his team into the next round.[9] Wigan played Watford in the third round, and the game was taken to extra time with neither side able to score after 90 minutes. Ryan Taylor scored the opening goal from the penalty spot in the 98th minute before Andreas Johansson sealed the victory with two goals late in the second half of extra time. In the fourth round, Wigan were drawn at home against Newcastle United, but despite being drawn against stronger opposition, Jewell reiterated that he would continue to use his fringe players in the cup, as Premier League survival was still the main priority for the club.[10] Wigan beat their opponents 1–0 through a penalty from David Connolly late in the game, with Newcastle manager Graeme Souness conceding that Wigan were "totally dominant".[11] The club then met local rivals Bolton Wanderers in the quarter final, where Roberts' two goals late in the first half were enough to take Wigan to their first ever major cup semi final.[12]

Wigan's next opponents were Arsenal, with the first match of the two-legged tie to be played at the JJB Stadium. Wigan won the match 1–0 against a weakened Arsenal side, with debutant Paul Scharner scoring the goal. The attendance of 12,181, the lowest figure for a League Cup semi-final for almost ten years,[13] was criticised by several media outlets, but club officials argued that the poor attendance was caused by a busy fixture list – the match was Wigan's fifth home game in the space of three weeks.[14][15] Arsenal fielded their "strongest available line-up" for the return leg at Highbury,[16] but struggled to beat Wigan goalkeeper Mike Pollitt, who made "a string of outstanding saves",[17] including a first-half penalty against José Antonio Reyes. Arsenal made their first breakthrough around the halfway point of the second half, with Thierry Henry scoring the goal to tie the game on aggregate. The game went into extra time, and Arsenal took a 2–1 aggregate lead through a Robin van Persie free kick, before Wigan's Jason Roberts scored in the final two minutes to clinch a place in the cup final on the away goal rule.

The final was played at the Millennium Stadium against Manchester United, with Wigan going into the final as "huge underdogs".[18] Mike Pollitt, a former youth player at Manchester United, picked up an injury early in the first half and was replaced by John Filan. Although Manchester United finished the game as comfortable 4–0 winners, Paul Jewell was "proud" of his players and felt the team "didn't get the breaks" they needed to beat their opponents.[19]

Date Round Opponent Result Venue Scorers Attendance Match Report
20 September 2005 Second Round Bournemouth 1–0 Home Roberts 86' 3,346 Report
25 October 2005 Third Round Watford 3–0 (aet) Home Taylor 98' (pen), Johansson 117', 120+1' 4,531 Report
30 November 2005 Fourth Round Newcastle United 1–0 Home Connolly 88' (pen) 11,574 Report
20 December 2005 Quarter Final Bolton Wanderers 2–0 Home Roberts 40', 45+3' 13,401 Report
10 January 2006 Semi Final (1st leg) Arsenal 1–0 Home Scharner 78' 12,181 Report
24 January 2006 Semi Final (2nd leg) Arsenal 2–1 (aet) Away Roberts 119' 34,692 Report
(2-2 on aggregate - Wigan Athletic go through on away goals.)
26 February 2006 Final Manchester United 0–4 Neutral 66,866 Report

Squad statistics

[20]

# Pos. Player League FA Cup League Cup Total Discipline
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Booked Red card
1 GK Australia John Filan 15 0 3 0 1 (1) 0 19 (1) 0 0 0
2 DF France Pascal Chimbonda 37 2 2 0 3 (1) 0 42 (1) 2 7 0
3 DF Scotland Stephen McMillan 0 (2) 0 1 0 4 0 5 (2) 0 0 0
4 DF England Matt Jackson 11 (5) 0 3 0 4 0 18 (5) 0 1 0
5 DF Brazil Emerson Thome 0 0 0 0 3 0 3 0 0 0
6 DF Switzerland Stéphane Henchoz 26 0 1 (1) 0 3 (1) 0 30 (2) 0 9 0
7 FW Senegal Henri Camara 25 (4) 12 0 0 2 (1) 0 27 (5) 12 0 0
8 MF Sweden Andreas Johansson 6 (10) 4 3 1 4 (2) 2 13 (12) 7 0 1
10 MF Scotland Lee McCulloch 27 (3) 5 1 0 3 (1) 0 31 (4) 5 8 1
11 MF Republic of Ireland Graham Kavanagh 32 (3) 0 1 (1) 0 4 (1) 0 37 (5) 0 9 0
12 GK England Mike Pollitt 23 (1) 0 0 0 6 0 29 (1) 0 0 0
13 GK England Gary Walsh 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
14 MF Republic of Ireland Alan Mahon 5 (1) 1 2 0 5 0 12 (1) 1 1 0
15 DF England David Wright 1 (1) 0 0 0 2 0 3 (1) 0 0 0
16 DF Netherlands Arjan De Zeeuw 31 0 1 0 3 0 35 0 5 0
17 MF Jamaica Damien Francis 16 (4) 1 3 0 1 0 20 (4) 1 2 0
18 DF Austria Paul Scharner 14 (2) 3 1 0 2 (1) 1 17 (3) 4 6 0
19 DF England Ryan Taylor 3 (8) 0 1 0 4 1 8 (8) 1 2 0
20 MF Scotland Gary Teale 20 (4) 0 1 (1) 0 6 (1) 0 27 (6) 0 0 1
21 MF England Jimmy Bullard 35 (1) 4 0 (2) 0 4 0 39 (3) 4 0 0
22 FW Republic of Ireland David Connolly 4 (13) 1 1 1 2 (1) 1 7 (14) 3 0 0
23 MF Switzerland Reto Ziegler 5 (5) 0 1 0 0 (2) 0 6 (7) 0 0 0
24 MF Australia Josip Skoko 3 (2) 0 3 0 3 0 9 (2) 0 1 0
26 DF England Leighton Baines 35 (2) 0 2 0 3 (1) 0 40 (3) 0 3 0
27 MF England David Thompson 7 (3) 2 0 0 0 0 7 (3) 2 4 0
30 FW Grenada Jason Roberts 34 8 1 (2) 2 4 (2) 4 39 (4) 14 4 1
32 MF England Luke Joyce 0 0 0 (1) 0 0 0 0 (1) 0 0 0
33 FW England Neil Mellor 3 1 1 0 1 0 5 1 0 0
36 DF England Joey Waterhouse 0 0 0 0 0 (1) 0 0 (1) 0 0 0

Transfers

After initially struggling to attract players to the club,[21] Mike Pollitt became the club's first signing of the summer. This was followed by the signing of little-known French right-back Pascal Chimbonda, Ryan Taylor of Tranmere Rovers and experienced defender Stéphane Henchoz. Nicky Eaden and Ian Breckin, who both featured regularly in the previous season's promotion winning side,[22] were sold to Nottingham Forest. On 6 August 2005, Wigan signed Senegalese international Henri Camara for £3 million, smashing the club's previous record transfer fee of £2 million paid for striker Jason Roberts. Former player Arjan De Zeeuw also returned to the club after being signed from Portsmouth, and was made the club's captain. Just before the start of the season, West Bromwich Albion made a £3 million bid for previous season's Championship top goalscorer Nathan Ellington. This met the minimum fee release clause in the player's contract, meaning the bid had to be accepted, and Ellington completed the move a few days later. Wigan signed David Connolly for a fee of £2 million as a replacement for Ellington on transfer deadline day.

Wigan strengthened the side further during the January transfer window with new signings Paul Scharner and David Thompson, as well as bringing in Neil Mellor and Reto Ziegler on loan. In April, Fulham had a £2.5 million bid accepted for Jimmy Bullard after the offer had triggered the player's release clause, and a deal was agreed which would be officially completed after the season had finished. After the final match against Arsenal, Pascal Chimbonda almost immediately handed in a transfer request, resulting in a transfer saga that would last for the entire duration of the summer transfer window. Henchoz and Thompson, whose contracts were due to expire, were both released.

In

Player From Fee Date Notes
England Mike Pollitt England Rotherham United £200,000 30 June 2005 [23]
France Pascal Chimbonda France Bastia £500,000 8 July 2005 [24]
England Ryan Taylor England Tranmere Rovers £750,000 13 July 2005 [25]
Switzerland Stéphane Henchoz Unattached Free 29 July 2005 [26]
Jamaica Damien Francis England Norwich City £1,000,000 5 August 2005 [27]
Senegal Henri Camara England Wolverhampton Wanderers £3,000,000 06-08-2005 [28]
Netherlands Arjan De Zeeuw England Portsmouth Undisclosed 12 August 2005 [29]
Australia Josip Skoko Turkey Gençlerbirliği Undisclosed 23 August 2005 [30]
Republic of Ireland David Connolly England Leicester City £2,000,000 31 August 2005 [31]
Austria Paul Scharner Norway Brann £2,000,000 1 January 2006 [32]
England David Thompson England Blackburn Rovers Free 19 January 2006 [33]
  • Total spending: Decrease £9,450,000

Out

Player To Fee Date Notes
England Nicky Eaden England Nottingham Forest Free 1 July 2005 [34]
England Ian Breckin England Nottingham Forest £350,000 5 July 2005 [35]
Brazil Magno Vieira Unattached Free 8 July 2005 [36]
Scotland David Graham England Sheffield Wednesday £250,000 12 August 2005 [37]
England Nathan Ellington England West Bromwich Albion £3,000,000 15 August 2005 [38]
England Phil Edwards England Accrington Stanley Free 12-01-2006 [39]
Brazil Emerson Thome Unattached Free 7 February 2006 [40]
England Luke Joyce England Carlisle United Free 4 April 2006 [41]
England Jimmy Bullard England Fulham £2,500,000 End of season [42]
Switzerland Stéphane Henchoz Unattached Free End of season [43]
England David Thompson Unattached Free End of season [43]
  • Total income: Increase £6,100,000

Loans in

Player From Start date End date Notes
England Neil Mellor England Liverpool 19 January 2006 End of season [44]
Switzerland Reto Ziegler England Tottenham Hotspur 23 January 2006 End of season [45]

Loans out

Player To Start Date End Date Notes
Brazil Emerson Thome England Derby County 27 October 2005 26 November 2005 [46]
England David Wright England Norwich City 17 November 2005 16 December 2005 [47]
Australia Josip Skoko England Stoke City 7 February 2006 End of season [48]
England Kevin Lee England Blackpool 23 March 2006 End of season [49]
Republic of Ireland Alan Mahon England Burnley 23 March 2006 End of season [50]

Final league table

Pos Club Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Comments
1 Chelsea 38 29 4 5 72 22 +50 91 2006–07 UEFA Champions League Group stage
2 Manchester United 38 25 8 5 72 34 +38 83
3 Liverpool 38 25 7 6 57 25 +32 82 2006–07 UEFA Champions League
Third qualifying round
4 Arsenal 38 20 7 11 68 31 +37 67
5 Tottenham Hotspur 38 18 11 9 53 38 +15 65 UEFA Cup 2006–07 First round
6 Blackburn Rovers 38 19 6 13 51 42 +9 63
7 Newcastle United 38 17 7 14 47 42 +5 58 2006 UEFA Intertoto Cup Third round
8 Bolton Wanderers 38 15 11 12 49 41 +8 56
9 West Ham United 38 16 7 15 52 55 -3 55 UEFA Cup 2006–07 First round1
10 Wigan Athletic 38 15 6 17 45 52 -7 51
11 Everton 38 14 8 16 34 49 -15 50
12 Fulham 38 14 6 18 48 58 -10 48
13 Charlton Athletic 38 13 8 17 41 55 -14 47
14 Middlesbrough 38 12 9 17 48 58 -10 45
15 Manchester City 38 13 4 21 43 48 -5 43
16 Aston Villa 38 10 12 16 42 55 -13 42
17 Portsmouth 38 10 8 20 37 62 -25 38
18 Birmingham City 38 8 10 20 28 50 -22 34 Relegated to
Football League Championship 2006–07
19 West Bromwich Albion 38 7 9 22 31 58 -27 30
20 Sunderland 38 3 6 29 26 69 -43 15

P = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points

1.West Ham qualified for the UEFA Cup as FA Cup finalists

See also

References

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  20. FootballSquads - Wigan Athletic - 2005–06
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External links