Barrow happy to have Pete on side

Graham Barrow says he is confident he'll be able to rely on Peter Atherton to provide any support he needs in his new role as Wigan Athletic interim boss.
Peter Atherton and Graham BarrowPeter Atherton and Graham Barrow
Peter Atherton and Graham Barrow

Atherton, the club’s Under-21 chief, will be stepping up from his duties to assist Barrow with the first-team, in the reshuffle following the departures of Warren Joyce and Andy Welsh.

“In my own mind I’m very clear on what needs to happen,” Barrow told the Wigan Post. “And I knew straight away I wanted Peter to step up and help me.

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“He’s Wigan through and through, very similar to myself, but more than that he’s also an excellent coach and excellent at assessing what’s going on in the game.

“Some coaches are just good coaches during the week. But me and Peter have spent many an hour and a half stood on the gentry last year, helping Gary (Caldwell), and we got to know each other very well.

“He’s a very deep thinker about the game, very similar to myself, and he’s perfect for the role in terms of what I need.

“We’ll assess the other roles but, as I’ve said many times, this club is set up for a manager to manage.

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“The surroundings, the training pitch, the staff, the girls in the office, the medical staff...I’ve no worries on that score.”

Barrow is also confident he can produce ‘a performance’ out of his players against Aston Villa at the DW this weekend that can help turn things around.

“I probably would have said a few months ago the result was more important than the performance,” he added. “But I really think we need a performance this weekend – for the supporters, for the club, for the owners, for everybody.

“If we can get a performance, I think we can also get a result. It’s a case of tweaking a few things, trying to get players forward into more attacking positions, while knowing the best side is similar to what we’ve been playing.

“Like everybody else, I’ve been frustrated with losing. But we’ve got a chance to do something about that now.”

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