Emotional Shaun Maloney reacts to Wigan Athletic's defeat at Birmingham City - 'It hurts'

Latics had gone toe-to-toe with the big spenders of the division, and deserved Thelo Aasgaard's equaliser midway through the equaliser, which cancelled out Alfie May's first-half strike.

However, the visitors had to play out the closing stages with 10 men after substitute Steven Sessegnon limped off - with Latics having used all of their permitted changes.

And there was a sickening sense of inevitability when Scott Wright fired home from close range in the first of nine added minutes, after Latics were unable to clear a Birmingham corner.

All of which leaves Latics with only three points on the board from their four league matches played - but with their manager understandably proud of the effort his side had put in.

"When they scored, they had a 10-minute period when the momentum was all with them, we had to dig in," said Maloney.

"But to come here and play the way we did, to play through them like we did...what the lads did was unbelievable. Sometimes in football it can hurt, and today it hurts.

"We had to play the last 10 minutes plus stoppage-time with 10 men, and the boys had to suffer. But up until then, the boys were amazing.

"We'd made all our substitutions...it changed the dynamic of the game we were suffering without the ball, the energy we put in, the intensity...and this one hurts."

The home side were off to a flier and took the lead with 18 minutes on the clock.

Willum Willumsson timed his pass to perfection, splitting the Latics defence that fatally stopped, expecting an offside flag, and May slotted home past Sam Tickle.

Only a brilliant last-ditch challenge from Luke Chambers prevented Willumsson having a free shot on goal to make it 2-0, before Latics challenged for the first time, Aasgaard seeing a powerful header well saved by Bailey Peacock-Farrell.

With Sessegnon taking over from James Carragher at half-time, Latics defended well to stay in the game until the hour mark, Jason Kerr producing a stunning block to save the blushes of team-mate Dion Rankine, whose fluffed clearance had presented a gift for Willumsson.

And new signings Jensen Weir and Dale Taylor took over from Baba Adeeko and Joe Hugill for the final third, to give the visitors fresh legs up top.

Within six minutes, the visitors were level, with Aasgaard's seemingly harmless shot from 20 yards somehow finding its way through Peacock-Farrell and into the back of the home goal.

Latics could and perhaps should have taken the lead, when Matt Smith exchanged passes with Rankine, only to slide his shot well wide from inside the home box.

That was the pair's last involvement, with Scott Smith and Callum McManaman entering the fray - but it was this extra change that caused an issue in the closing stages.

Sessegnon pulled up lame with 10 minutes to go, unable to carry on and, with Latics having made all their substitutions, they had to close out the game a man down.

And their luck ran out in the first of nine added minutes, when Wright rifled the ball into the roof of the net.