Aston Villa

2.57

• 
  4

  1

  2.50

  Bradley Guzan

  Could do nothing about Ramis’ goal as the defender leapt unchallenged six yards out to head past him, however he will be disappointed with the second and third goals which were similar to efforts he conceded on Boxing Day.

• 
  1

  1

  2.50

  Ciaran Clark

  Was calm in possession but with so little to pass the ball to he was occasionally caught in possession by the Wigan forwards. He was good in the air against Kone and Di Santo but was lucky not to be punished for a lack of pace against Kone.

• 
  1

  1

  3.00

  Joseph Bennett

  Looked lively down the left, jinking past Boyce on a couple of occasions to deliver dangerous crosses into the penalty area. However his chances going forward were limited to the first half as the home side struggled to get into the game.

• 
  1

  1

  2.50

  Eric Lichaj

  Adventurous down the right hand side, but he needed to be smarter defensively as Beausejour had plenty of success against him. He was lucky not to be punished by more accurate crossing, but he failed to threaten in the second half.

• 
  0

  1

  2.50

  Matthew Lowton

  A tough afternoon given the start his side had and he struggled with the pace and control that Wigan attacked with. He made some good challenges when required but his passing was often misplaced.

• 
  0

  4

  2.50

  Stephen Ireland

  The subject of criticism from the home fans for his lack of energy in the first half and rightly so he struggled to get into the game and often mis-placed his passes when he did get the ball. Improved as the game went on but he was replaced on the hour by Albrighton.

• 
  2

  1

  1.50

  Brett Holman Flop of the Match

  Struggled to retain possession in the middle of the pitch which frustrated team-mates and fans alike. He was never really in the game as the Wigan midfield dominated possession throughout and as a result he was replaced by El Ahmadi in the second half.

• 
  0

  1

  3.00

  Barry Bannan

  The holding man in midfield he sat in to protect his defence and in general did well, although there were times he was overrun and needed more help. He worked hard but could do nothing to stop the visitors taking all three points.

• 
  1

  0

  2.50

  Chris Herd

  He did all he could to keep the Wigan forwards at bay but the constant flow of attacks meant it was a busy afternoon for the defender. He was unable to stop Boyce in the build-up to the second goal and could only watch as Kone rounded Guzan for the third.

• 
  1

  2

  3.00

  C. Benteke

  He started the game badly as he let Ramis have a free header for the early goal, but after that he worked hard but was a little bit bullied by the Spaniard at times. He never had a sight of goal on a frustrating afternoon on his own up front.

• 
  0

  1

  3.00

  Andreas Weimann

  Full of energy and the man Villa looked to spark them into life, he chased down the Wigan defenders, won the ball back and tried to test Al-Habsi but his shooting was the only thing that let him down.

Substitutions

• 
  0

  2

  2.50

  Karim El Ahmadi

  Replaced Ireland just after the hour mark but could not turn things around for his team.

• 
  1

  1

  2.50

  Marc Albrighton

  Replaced Holman just after the hour mark but had little impact on the game.

• 
  0

  2

  2.50

  Jordan Nathaniel Bowery

  Replaced Lichaj just after the hour mark and gave better support to Benteke but he was unable to test Al Habsi.

Wigan Athletic

3.29

• 
  4

  1

  3.00

  Ali Al Habsi

  Did not have a shot to save in the first half but was relieved to see Holman’s shot skim his crossbar in the final moments. His distribution was mixed, generally it was pretty decent but there were a few occasions where he took an extra touch meaning his clearances were rushed and misplaced.

• 
  2

  0

  3.00

  Gary Caldwell

  Had a good battle with Benteke throughout the game and handled the Belgian well. He was a solid presence in the back three and gave his team-mates real confidence with his powerful clearing headers.

• 
  1

  1

  3.50

  Emmerson Boyce

  Enjoyed a good game on the right-hand side, he was full of running and looked to press the Villa defence back. He capped a good performance as he doubled Wigan’s lead in the 52nd minute, he exchanged passes with Kone on the edge of the area and fired past Guzan.

• 
  1

  1

  3.50

  Iván Ramis

  He rose to meet Beausejour’s corner in the third minute for his second league goal for the club and to give the visitors the ideal start. It was the start of a very good game for the central defender, he was strong in the air and was not afraid to bring the ball out of defence, however some of his passing lacked accuracy.

• 
  2

  0

  3.00

  Maynor Figueroa

  A fairly easy game for the defender, he was able to cope with everything that the Villa forwards threw at him and distributed the ball out of defence very nicely.

• 
  3

  0

  4.00

  James McCarthy Top of the Match

  The Irishman controlled the midfield for Wigan with his well-timed challenges and neat passing, he was never worried when in possession and was a real thorn in Villa’s side.

• 
  2

  0

  3.00

  David Jones

  A solid performance in the middle of the pitch alongside McCarthy, he was given far too much time by the Villa players and he used that to his advantage to keep possession and create chances for the men in front of him. He was replaced by McArthur in the 65th minute.

• 
  3

  0

  3.00

  Jean Beausejour

  The Chilean began the game perfectly as he delivered a left-wing corner right onto the head of Ramis who powered it past Guzan. He was a good outlet for the Wigan attacks and threatened down the left-hand side but his deliveries were too inconsistent and generally over-hit. He was replaced by Gomez late on.

• 
  4

  0

  3.50

  Arouna Kone

  Gave the Villa defence a lot to deal with as he constantly ran them down and looked to get himself into space where he could. His work was rewarded in the 56th minute as he latched onto a Di Santo through ball before rounding Guzan to score from a tight angle.

• 
  6

  1

  3.50

  Franco Di Santo

  Worked very hard for the team, his hold-up play was excellent and really helped Wigan dominate possession throughout the game. He showed that he has a good range of passing in the second half as he released Kone with a superb through ball that split the Villa defence wide open.

• 
  2

  0

  3.50

  Shaun Maloney

  He was full of running in the Wigan midfield and was keen to get on the ball whenever he could in the attacking third. His passing was excellent and generally opened up the Villa defence with ease.

Substitutions

• 
  1

  0

  Jordi Gómez

  Replaced Beausejour in the 79th minute but wasn't really involved.

• 
  1

  0

  3.00

  James McArthur

  Replaced Jones in the 65th minute and continued the work done by his team mate in the middle of the pitch.

• 
  1

  0

  Callum McManaman

  Replaced Kone late on.