David Moyes’ 400th game in charge of Everton should have been a celebration of the Scot’s success at Goodison Park.
But despite being offered up a selection of help-yourself chances, the Blues' strikers never came to the party and what should have been a comfortable win for the Toffees petered out to 0-0 draw.
Glorious opportunities wasted by Louis Saha and Seamus Coleman, and a Tim Cahill effort which rebounded off the woodwork were enough to ensure Wigan walked away with a valuable point despite being under the kosh for long periods.
Moyes named an unchanged team after Everton’s impressive point at Stamford Bridge last week. And if they were buoyed by that result their confidence manifested itself in long, but ultimately fruitless sequences of possession which were snuffed out by the industrious Wigan back four.
Steven Pieaar and Leighton Baines offered the Blues most successful route into the Latics territory but even that normally coherent pairing were guilty of overplaying in important areas as Everton failed to test Ali Al Habsi in the first 45 minutes.
As Leighton Baines teammates failed to get on the end of his wicked crosses, one Jack Rodwell header which was well blocked by Ben Watson was all the Blues could muster in a scrappy first half.
Symptomatic of both teams lack of ball control was the string of untidy challenges from players on both sides trying to win back possession.
Both Henry Thomas and Steven Pienaar could easily have seen second after late challenges in the second half.
Everton came out an improved side in the second half and Steven Pienaar signalled his team’s intent to go for goal with a powerful 25 yard strike which was well beat away by Al Habsi.
After that display of power the South African showed the subtlety of his game when he threaded ball which brought Goodison Park to it’s feet. The midfielder’s slide rule effort split Wigan’s retreating defence and left Louis Saha with only the keeper to beat. The Frenchman’s finishing touch illuded him again though and his tame shot was straight at the keeper.
That was the first in a flurry of glorious opportunities for Everton who could have had three in as many minutes.
Tim Cahill rose to meet a Sylvain Distin cross only a minute after Saha’s miss, his header dropped painfully onto Al Habsi’s right hand post to the disbelief of the Park End.
Wigan were all at sea as Everton pressed on, sensing a goal. Seamus Coleman was found beautifully by Pienaar again but the Irishman couldn’t keep his composure and once more the Latics were given a reprieve by their opponent’s lack of conviction in front of goal.
David Moyes sought to address that issue immediately with the introduction of last week’s hero Jermaine Beckford, and this week’s villain Victor Anichebe.
The young Nigerian was booed on the ball by the home crowd after midweek stories suggesting he was unhappy with his contract and could move elsewhere for more money at the end of the season.
One way traffic continued into the closing stages of the game with Everton desperately pushing for an winner.
And they might have had one when Jermaine Beckford was set free by fellow substitute Anichebe, he slid coolly under Al Habsi but his celebrations were cut short by the linesman who had deemed the striker to be marginally offside.
As the pace of the game subsided the Goodison crowd looked resigned to another underwhelming hom result. But a disappointing point could very easily have been a disastrous defeat when Ronnie Stam found himself with a clear sight of goal at the end of a sweeping Wigan counter attack.
The substitute’s effort was tipped round the post brilliantly by Howard who sprung to life after being largely untested all game.
Everton were booed off at full time after failing to make real in roads during the five minutes of time added on.
David Moyes was left to rue the missed opportunities which he said are as good as a team could expect to get in the league.
He said: “I don’t know if you can get chances as good as we had them in the Premier League today. I’m looking at other parts of out game to see if we can makes changes to fix it elsewhere. But I don’t know how much further I can look. We just need to take those chances.
“It wasn’t just the strikers who missed chances today, you’ve got Coleman, Pienaar, Cahill and obviously Louis had his miss.”
The point leaves Everton in 15th just two points off the drop zone.
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Everton (4-4-1-1): Howard, Jagielka, Baines, Distin, Neville, Fellaini, Rodwell, Coleman, Pienaar (Anichebe 66), Cahill, Saha (Beckford 60).
Subs: Mucha, Bilyaletdinov, Beckford, Osman, Yakubu, Anichebe, Duffy
Wigan (4-5-1): Al Habsi, Gohouri, Alcaraz, Thomas (McArthur 65), Watson, N'Zogbia, Caldwell, Cleverley (Stam 46), Rodallega, Diame, Figueroa
Subs: Pollit, G. Caldwell, Boselli, Gomez, McArthur, Stam, McManaman
Goals:
Yellow: Neville 7, Cleverly 27, Thomas, 31, Gohouri 81, Figueroa 90
Red:
Ref: M. Oliver
Att: 32,853
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