Bolton ease to comfortable victory over Wigan Athletic

Bolton Wanderers 4 - 1 Wigan Athletic

Marcus Forss struck twice on his full league debut as Bolton swept aside Wigan 4-1 to end a long barren run against their neighbours.

Author | Mark Scott

Stadium | Toughsheet Community Stadium

It was the Trotters’ first home league victory over Latics since November 2014, a sequence that had seen them go winless in four meetings, losing the last three by a combined 10-0.

Thierry Gale opened the scoring after 15 minutes with his first goal in League One before turning provider five minutes later, setting up Middlesbrough loanee Forss to double the advantage.

Bolton tightened their grip before half-time when Mason Burstow, on loan from Hull, rifled in his fifth of the season with a precise low finish.

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Forss added his second five minutes into the second half, capitalising on a wayward header from Morgan Fox to put the result beyond doubt.

Paul Mullin pulled one back for Wigan with his fourth goal since joining on loan from Wrexham, but it offered little comfort to the visitors in front of a crowd of 25,565.

Which players stood out?

Teddy Sharman-Lowe: Confident under the high ball, taking charge of several corners. His throw to Gale played a part in Wigan’s goal, but it was only a small mark on an otherwise composed showing.

Josh Dacres-Cogley: Reliable defensively and progressive with the ball. Supplied the cross for Gale’s opener and allowed little threat down his side.

Chris Forino: Praised as “immense” by Steven Schumacher, and it was difficult to disagree. Dominant in the air and dealt with almost everything Wigan delivered into the box.

The Wigan perspective

Lowe’s favoured system of three central defenders with wing-backs was repeatedly undone by Bolton’s wide players. The Latics manager switched to a back four after the interval, but the damage had already been done.

One Latics fan told us: “I thought we were strangely out of sorts against Bolton. It just wasn’t us. We definitely missed Jason Kerr, but those who played did not give a good account of themselves.”