Fowler Sparkles on a Dull Day in Wigan

On a pitch as heavy as a badly made fruit cake, Wigan struggled to overcome the absence, for one reason or another, of their entire complement of regular strikers, while Liverpool sparkled only fitfully on a day when Robbie Fowler, arguably the best natural finisher the Premiership has seen, was restored to the ranks.

The home side, though full of honest endeavour, are a shadow of the team who, fresh up from the Championship, took the Premiership by storm in the opening weeks of the season and with Liverpool clearly not at their best, the outcome was a predominantly dour and depressing encounter relieved by the occasional flash of inspiration.

Most of the entertainment was provided by Fowler as he rolled back the years with his neat lay-offs, intelligent movement and menacing runs in and around the box – all beautifully timed and marked by impeccable awareness. By contrast Gerrard, banished for the most part to the right touchline, looked strangely out of sorts, while on the opposite flank Kewell was ponderous and predictable, both with and without the ball.

In the 29th minute Liverpool took an unexpected and entirely fortuitous lead after their corner had been inexpertly cleared by Wigan and a speculative overhead ball towards the box enabled Sami Hyypia, who fortunately hadn’t had time to retreat, to beat Pollitt. And just before half-time, the Reds could have increased their lead when Fowler, who had drifted to the left, sent in a magical ball for Morientes to volley, only to be denied by the sharp reflexes of Wigan’s keeper.


Liverpool’s response was a sweeping move which saw Fowler create an opportunity for Gerrard, who by this time was playing more centrally, to test Pollitt. It was practically Robbie’s last contribution since, short of fitness, he had inevitably faded as his energy resources became depleted and he was withdrawn after 66 minutes.

Within minutes Morientes had also left the scene, replaced by Cisse, but by then this unedifying and disjointed spectacle which had been dominated by the deficiencies of an unworthy playing surface was already doomed and drifting towards an undignified end.