Gary Caldwell has called on Wigan Athletic to dig in and stay focused after a defeat at Wimbledon extended their winless run to three League One matches.
Speaking after the game, the Wigan manager was measured but direct. "We have to keep working," he said, refusing to accept that the run signals anything deeper than a difficult spell that the squad must work their way through.
Three without a win
The loss at Wimbledon is the latest in a sequence that will concern supporters at the DW Stadium. Three matches without a victory in the third tier leaves Wigan searching for the consistency that Caldwell has repeatedly demanded since taking charge.
Earlier this summer the manager spoke of the squad being "in a good place" ahead of the season opener, and pre-season reports painted a picture of a well-drilled group that had embraced a data-led approach to preparation. That groundwork now needs to translate into points, and quickly, before the early weeks of the campaign begin to define Wigan's ceiling.
The Wimbledon defeat follows other recent frustrations. Leyton Orient took a draw at the DW, and Cambridge United beat Wigan 3-2 earlier in August, with the Cambridge management openly admitting they targeted a positive result. Three separate opponents, three matches without a win: the pattern demands attention.
What is going wrong?
Without a full match report on the Wimbledon game, it would be unfair to single out individual performances. What is clear is that Caldwell believes the answers lie on the training pitch rather than in the transfer market. His message after the defeat was consistent with the tone he has struck all pre-season: work, prepare, trust the process.
Wigan did add bodies during the summer window. Luke Harris arrived on a season loan from Fulham, and Chelsea teenager Walsh joined shortly afterwards. Those additions suggested ambition to compete in the top half of the third tier. Whether the squad is gelling at the pace Caldwell needs is the question supporters are beginning to ask.
James Carragher, involved with the club's pre-season coverage, noted that the preparation period had been tough for the players. A demanding pre-season can take weeks to filter through into match-day sharpness, and some managers would point to that as context for a slow start. Caldwell, characteristically, is not leaning on excuses.
The bigger picture
Three games into a League One season is early. Clubs that finish in the top six routinely suffer bumpy patches in August and recover. However, the third tier is unforgiving in the sense that dropped points against sides like Wimbledon are exactly the ones that haunt clubs come April when the play-off places are decided.
Wigan's ownership situation stabilised after Caldwell publicly praised the club's owner for keeping the club alive. That off-pitch calm should, in theory, allow the manager to focus purely on football. Now he needs a performance and a result to back up his words.
The message from the dressing room at Wimbledon was simple: keep working. Whether the squad can convert that mentality into a win in their next outing will say a great deal about whether this is a brief wobble or something that requires a more significant response.
Frequently asked
- How many games without a win are Wigan Athletic on?
- Wigan Athletic are on a run of three League One matches without a win following their defeat at Wimbledon.
- What did Gary Caldwell say after the Wimbledon defeat?
- Caldwell said Wigan have to keep working, refusing to panic but acknowledging the side need to turn their form around quickly.
- Who has Wigan Athletic signed this season?
- Wigan brought in Luke Harris on a season loan from Fulham and Chelsea teenager Walsh on a season loan during the summer window.