Martinez thrilled with performance

Wigan manager Roberto Martinez was delighted his side ended their eight-game winless run in the Premier League with victory over Blackburn.

The Latics overcame a sluggish pitch at the DW Stadium and stern opponents in Rovers to hold on for a thrilling 4-3 victory.

“The performance deserved the win. Probably the first 20 minutes we couldn’t get into the tempo of the game, the pitch was allowing Blackburn to be direct and we couldn’t cope with that,” Martinez said.

“Then we conceded a goal out of trying to play football and getting caught but I’m pleased that we reacted in the right manner.”

“It didn’t affect our philosophy and the way we want to play and from then on I’ve seen three of the best goals you’re going to see in the Premier League.”

“That’s a side of any squad that is the biggest compliment you can pay. I’m proud of the players that they’ve been able to show the quality we all know they’ve got.”

“Then we’ve been able to close the game out, and in the last 15 minutes we were resolute, we concentrated and we showed a great maturity to get the three points.”

Wigan improved to 17th place in the Premier League with the result, escaping the clutches of the drop zone and trailing the 11th-placed Rovers by five points.

The loss was Blackburn’s third in a row but manager Steve Kean still took some positives from the defeat, highlighting his side’s late comeback and away goals as small wins for the boys from Ewood Park.

“We made a very good start and even after the goal we had a couple of opportunities where we could have increased the lead,” he said.

“It’s disappointing to score three goals away from home and come away with nothing but I think it was going to be about the team who made the least amount of mistakes on a tricky afternoon, and fair play to Wigan, they got a bit of momentum and they pushed us. But I thought we showed good character to come back.”