Wigan Athletic 2 Charlton Athletic 3
Our What’s App chat at half time was debating how many goals we were going to let in during the 2nd half. No way won’t they score said one.
Well for 80 odd minutes we were fine, three goals to the good. Six minutes to go and Wigan score, and I am bemoaning another game without a clean sheet. Then they score again and then we are baying for the final whistle.
We won though, and we must not forget that first half. It was everything you want to see from a Charlton side. We were quick, aggressive, dangerous, inventive, and strong at the back.
We scored three beautifully constructed goals, could have had more and pressed and harried Wigan into oblivion.
Leaburn in the middle was pertinacious, CBT was electric and May was, well we have not had a striker this admirable since, I am going to say it, Lyle Taylor.
Dobbo was loving it, probing, tackling, passing and Louie Watson was excellent beside him, numerous grades up from Scott Fraser.
Then there was poor old Panutche Camara, who went off with a hamstring injury looking distraught after just 10 minutes. His replacement Tyreece Campbell only added to the masterpiece.
In fact right after half-time TC hit the post, that surely would have been game over, but it never is with Charlton and although I get why Appleton did it, but the subs unbalanced us and not helped by shirkers Kirk and Fraser.
If you gave Wigan their docked points back, they’d be above us in the table so this was a fine and deserved win, our first on the road this season.
MoM: Could have been Dobbo, Hector, Jones, May, Leaburn or CBT, but I’m going with Louie Watson,
Appleton of my eye: He had us primed to go from the start. Leaburn worked in the middle with CBT and May supporting him. If only we had players that could last 90 minutes then there had been no need to weaken the side with the subs. It does show that although we have numbers, we are still short on quality.
Elsewhere: A couple of games tonight saw Derby thrash Northampton 4-0, Oxford had a fine win at Lincoln and Wycombe and Cambridge was goalless.
I think our problem is that we can only play one half – to date we’ve played poorly in the first half and then turned things around after the break. Yesterday it was the opposite…
It looks likely that we’ve lost Panutche Camara for a few weeks, but it did allow us to switch Alfie May from playing wide right to the 10 position that he is better suited to playing. Would he have got those two goals had he stayed out wide?
Louie Watson’s cross for that first goal was the champagne moment for me, I see a bit of Josh Cullen in him, that ability to split the defence by putting the ball on the spot. Alfie May, all 5ft 8 of him didn’t need to outjump anyone, just time his run and be in the right position at the right time and in his form he wasn’t going to miss, even if the keeper made a save.
A shame about those few minutes. But it underlines the need to get another striker in to hold the ball up (Tedic barely got a kick) and to shift Charlie Kirk on, his marking for their second goal was beyond poor while Scott Fraser doesn’t seem to have a role in Appleton’s set-up, or not one I can see. Dean Holden used him as a number 10/attacking midfielder where he scored a few goals and made some assists, played deeper he looks a little lost and is chasing the game.
Still three points and an away win and we deserved it. The first half was some of the best football we’ve played this season, the movement, the passing, the pressure and we took those three chances well. Importantly we’re keeping in touch with the play-off places.
I am thinking of the last pre season friendly against Aberdeen.
A very good Scottish Premiership side had generally out thought and outplayed Charlton and were sitting comfortably at 0-3 until to late Charlton goals set up a frantic last few minutes. Did that change Aberdeen were by far the better side – No. Neither did Wigan’s 2 late goals change the fact that Charlton were by far the better side and thoroughly deserved the 3 points.
“pertinacious” That’s not a word….. 😉
Pert and tenacious 😀