Blackburn Rovers 0-0 Wigan Athletic: Shaun Maloney draws first game as Latics boss

Blackburn's Ben Brereton Diaz had a wide show of extremity but his onslaught lacked conviction

Shaun Maloney's reign arsenic Wigan Athletic manager began with an attritional Championship stalemate astatine Blackburn Rovers.

Although the goalless gully - Wigan's archetypal cleanable expanse since the corresponding fixture successful October - was not capable to determination them disconnected the ft of the table, the show brought greater cheer to the visiting supporters than the disgruntled location fans.

Blackburn were the brighter of the 2 sides aboriginal connected but Maloney's men grew successful confidence.

Despite a promising commencement the crippled progressively became hard going, with fewer clear-cut chances being created.

By the full-time whistle it was Wigan who were the happier of the 2 clubs, with a beardown and resilient show - a acold outcry from their antiaircraft troubles nether Maloney's predecessor Kolo Toure.

For Jon Dahl Tomasson it was a nighttime of vexation astatine his Blackburn broadside toiled with small imagination.

And yet the opening stages offered hope. Ben Amos came to Wigan's rescue successful the 4th infinitesimal erstwhile helium was down rapidly to smother Ben Brereton Diaz's shot. The Blackburn antheral was fixed mode excessively overmuch abstraction down the close of Wigan's fractional but his decorativeness was poor, with the striker signposting his changeable arsenic helium prepared to propulsion the trigger.

Wigan kept pushing arsenic Blackburn began to tally retired of ideas during the archetypal half. A cross-field shot from Omar Rekik gave chap debutant Danel Sinani immoderate abstraction to determination into. He chopped inside, seizing connected the spread created by Max Power's overlapping run, lone to spot his changeable peel distant from Aynsley Pears' goal.

Blackburn responded with their ain play of first-half unit - Amos again speedy to respond to Sorba Thomas' 45th-minute shot.

New lad Martin Kelly made his people for the visitors conscionable aft the hour. Blackburn's debased transverse looked destined to scope Bradley Dack, lone for the caller indebtedness signing from West Brom to wide the danger.

And the Latics could see themselves unfortunate not to instrumentality the pb wrong minutes. James McClean's country was met by Kelly astatine the acold post, but the extremity was disallowed owed to Callum Lang's tangle with Lewis Travis being interpreted arsenic a foul successful the hosts' favour - contempt replays being inconclusive.

Kelly's nighttime was to extremity connected a bittersweet note, with the defender being forced disconnected successful wide discomfort aft severely twisting his knee.

Blackburn had a precocious outcry for a punishment erstwhile Pickering appeared to stumble successful the box. No foul was given.

The effect leaves Wigan bottommost of the table, contempt drafting level with Blackpool connected 26 points.

For Blackburn determination was a feeling of points being wasted, contempt moving supra Millwall and level with sixth-placed West Brom.