He wants the players and the supporters to show their love for Wigan Athletic and just how important his club is.
We’ve had a difficult season, perhaps the biggest so far in our history as Martinez seeks to transform the team from perennial relegation battles into something a bit more special. The green shoots are there for everyone to see.
The team has a good solid young spine running through it. The players are hungry and at the right time in their careers to offer plenty to Wigan Athletic. Roberto Martinez is a very bright young manager with and equally bright future ahead of him in the game.
Although there are still two games to go, the Latics manager invited the Wigan Athletic fans’ websites into the inner sanctum for a second time this season as he sought to give his reflection on what has been a very important season for the club.
Once again, I am sure all the supporters are very grateful to have such a forthright young manager in charge of the club who isn’t afraid to offer supporters an insight into the working of their club.
It’s taken quite some time, but once again, spread over the next four days will be the full transcript of the interview here for all to read.
Part III
We have struggled when defending set peices and crosses this season at times. The players you have got there now with Caldwell, Bramble, Gohouri, these are players in previous seasons who haven't had any problem defending set pieces and crosses?
In set plays, there are two big things, the first is concentration, and the second is the intensity with which you defend. You cannot rely on three or four characters to defend set pieces, that would be very, very unfair.
As a team we need to take better responsibility. We have defended a lot better since the turn of the year which is a little bit to do with the numbers and a little bit to do with the allocation of the zonal jobs within hte area.
This is an area where we a re really looking to try and improve for next season. I have been pleased with the way we have defended since January, there has been a big improvement.
I love scoring goals from open play. I believe that scoring a goal from a set play should only be half a goal. I will keep fighting and if I can get that then one day that would be fantastic!
Anyone can score from a set play, and we definately need to improve in that department.
We conceeded at Fulham with no-one on the post. Was there supposed to be someone there or do we not play that way?
It depends, sometimes it depends on our personel and sometimes it depends on how the opposition approaches set plays. Barcelona, they have nobody on the goal so they can play offside. As soon as you get the second phase, everyone clears out and allows Valdes to use that area.
So everytime you put your set up defensively, you are always thinking about the opposition. It is also important to consider how the goalkeeper feels he wants to defend that area.
There is no perfect system. Everyone speaks about Liverpool and if you look at the way that Liverpool defend, that is the most successful way to defend set pieces.
At Valencia, when Rafael Benitez was there, if I show you the stats, he was fantastic. With Liverpool, the same system, but different personel, it has been a disaster.
So there is no right and wrong and sometimes you need to make a decision. Sometimes it pays off and sometimes it doesn't.
Against Fulham, the attacker had a free header. If you do not allow him a free header then you do not need someone on the back post. To have someone get one versus one they need to have six players forward like they normally do.
To have everyone matched up and one in a zonal position to attack the flight of the ball, you cannot have anyone spare to be on the back post.
But it is then that we talk about the responsibility and the intensity when we defend as you cannot allow anyone a free header, especially the best header for Fulham, Hangeland.
So obviously if we say if we had someone there then they would have stopped the header and they wouldn't have scored, but there is a reason, and sometimes football is a game of mistakes.
Against Fulham, we only had ourselves to blame for a free header in the box from a corner.
And then Arsenal, Mikael Silvestre did the same thing when he stole in.
Yes, yes.
Did Ben Watson get that wrong? It looks as though he is on the post and then McCarthy drops back. It looks like Watson should have gone across and didn't get there in time. That's what it looks like on the replay.
I tell you, against Arsenal, the biggest threat they have got is when they have got short corners. They way they do it, and they do it 95% of the time, is to play a short corner and then they get a one versus one in the area.
Normally we always get one in the near area, and one in the near post, and then you have got the far post area to cover. So the instruction against Arsenal was to cover the short and you have got two men who can come out.
The moment that they played direct the man on the near post must go to the far post and the man in the near area drops onto the near post.
As it went, as the ball travels, Ben didn't have enough time to get into the far post.
It looked like he waited too long to be honest Roberto.
You need to make that decision you know. That happens in a game and you make a run of twenty yards and you come back and you're thinking, phew, I'm knackered here. And the moment you are thinking that, you have not made the decision.
But he did score at the other end.
Yes, that was the plan to go 2-0 down!
But we had never come back from even 1-0 down before that? As I commented to my mate at the time, previously at 2-0 down we would have gone on to three, four or even five nil down. But the effort was still there and the committment was still there.
I would say the knowledge and knowing how to react as a team there. Believe me, when we went 9-1 at Tottenham and such a hurtful scoreline. But if we analyse it we were 1-0 down at half time and I felt that in the last fifteen minutes of the first half we were getting stronger.
We went into the second half and we conceeded eight goals in forty minutes. If we organise eleven players, even us, and we go to White Hart Lane, we don't conceed eight goals in forty minutes.
There is some sort of a freak element and we didn't know how to react as a team. We all wanted to get back and score goals as individuals, and then you leave yourselves exposed. Just to react in the manner we did against Arsenal shows we have learnt. Unfortunately we had to go through a painful experience but we have got there.
You mentioned that point last time that is it as easy to defend against five attackers as it is two, and that saw the end of Tony Mowbray at Celtic when they were playing six forwards in his last game but couldn't get a goal.
I think Tony Mowbray is a good example because he loves to base his attacking football on ball possession. So ball possession, if you have got six forwards but no-one at the back, you are not going to be effective.
People think that the more strikers you have got on the pitch then the more attacking threat. Not neccessarily. If you are going to put the ball in the air then maybe. If you are going to play it from the back, then unless you have got people to bring it forward then it doesn't work like that.
Speaking of forwards, Marcelo Moreno, are you pleased with him? There seems to have been a lot of effort, but there hasn't been any end product yet.
Yes, I am pleased that away from football, that when I see him, he works with a big smile. For me that was the biggest challenge that we had. Shakthar Donetesk paid 12 million Euro's and whatever your standard and your level is, you must have real quality.
He hasn't found home yet in European football. He went to Werder Bremen and didn't enjoy it. He went to Shakthar Donestsk and didn't enjoy it. Here, I can guarantee you that he loves every single second of it.
Is he going to be here next year though? It is a lot of money for a man who hasn't scored a goal.
Yes, true, but he is only 22 and he works his nuts off. He allows other players to be more effective. In terms of goals, I think he has been unlucky. If he had managed a goal I think we would have seen a completely different Marcelo.
If he would have scored one of the chances at Manchester City, he would have been a completely different player. But, you need to judge players on what they do on a daily basis again, and their attitude. In this respect, he has been a ten.
When we get to the end of the season, we will sitt down and we will assess it.
Is he available on a season long loan this time?
Well at the moment they are looking for a transfer.
I know we had Luis Antonio on loan for what seemed like forever before we signed him.
In those situations, we need to sit down with Marcelo. Marcelo has loved every single second with Wigan Athletic and that is what I wanted.
Now, what will happen in the future we will see but we want to do everything we can in the future to keep him happy. In the modern day game however finances will dictate that.
Are they looking for 12 million euro's again for him?
I don't think they can. Spurs agreed with Gremio in Brasil 9 million and then Shakthar paid twelve. I don't think he is in that bracket now.
That is a big chunck out of your transfer budget either way?
We don't have that sort of transfer budget!
If they wanted 6 or 7 million for him, it is still a lot of money?
Again we are talking about maybe Petrescu (Shakthar manager) has seen him play and he says no, no I want him here. First of all, they have got a say, then the player, and then we will see where we are.
I think it has been good for us. I am speaking with people who are playing in the Ukrainian league, and they are speaking about Wigan Athletic and Marcelo has said this, and Marcelo has said that. And he is enjoying his football and the way we play. We are in the bottom ten but we play like the top four, all the things, that what spurs me.
A main concern for us is where goals are going to come from? Jason has scored his two goals, but there hasn't been much else from him in terms of goal scoring, Moreno of course hasn't got a goal yet, for us, it is difficult to see where the goals are going to come from.
Firstly we don't want to lose Hugo and I don't think that anyone expected Charlie to score seven or eight goals last season. That is our challenge, we have to be creative. As a football club we have always been creative. We were the first to sign three Spaniards!
We will carry on being creative in that respect and that shouldn't bother you at all.
What will happen if we keep Hugo and Charlie and they get two cruciate injuries in August. You cannot be negative, you have to be positive. We have got to be happy with what we have got.
I am looking at James McCarthy, Victor Moses, Momo Diame, Charles N'Zogbia, Hugo Rodallega, Marcelo Moreno, the talent we have got, we could be working for five years with these players.
Pre-season, have we got any plans?
Yes, we are going to Austria, and we are trying to organise a couple of games because I think it will be important to play against teams who play different styles and can play a different way.
But we are definately going to Austria. It is a short pre-season, it is only going to be four weeks because of the world cup. We need to fit in 65 sessions within those four weeks.
We need to go somewhere with the squad to be able to work three sessions a day.
The main friendly is going to be on the 7th August at the DW and we are expecting to have a foreign team.
A big club?
Well a club that is going to test us in a different way. When you sign players, you need to play at your stadium and you need to go into the first league game knowing this is your stadium and this is your envirnoment. That is why the 7th August is going to be an important fixture.
I am excited about the pre-season already and we have still got two games left to go.
Going back to the mentality side of it, obviously when we were here last time we were talking about being beaten by Tottenham 9-1 and all the results like that. I think Arsenal is a cracking illustration that we have put all that behind us and we have developed from that. Going forwards to next season, what sort of vision have you got for Wigan Athletic next year?
I would like us to have more strength in depth, real competition for places, because that brings you consistency. At the moment, as I say, it drains you as a team when you beat Liverpool for example, and you beat Arsenal, or Chelsea, the next game is so difficult to repeat the same level, and we need to have that mentality.
We want that mentaility when you don't think about it. You just keep going because of the competition around you and that is what I am looking for next season. To have a squad, a bigger squad than we have had this season, because in a way we have been very, very thin through spells in the campaign.
For us to keep improving, we need to have, in terms of numbers, a stronger squad.
And then obviously going on from that, would you hope to be further up the table?
Yes and no. Obviously I want to finish as high as we can, but the aim of this season was to stay up. And when you lose five of your top games of the season you are risking your aim massively because it is a lot out of your hands.
So the aim is to stay up. Do you want to finish higher up the table or do you want to have results like the ones against Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea, I would say I prefer these performances, which is for me, what we as a football club are aiming to achieve.
Rather than the Birmingham City, 1-0 every week, sneaking it up the table kind of thing?
Yes, yes, I don't like to take anything away from other football clubs you know. Everyone has different ways, and I respect that. It is about results, as long as you get the results, you are looking at Inter Milan, who is going to say that there style wasn't positive or wasn't good, they are in the final.
I am a romantic, I would rather lose the way Barcelona lost than get through the way Inter Milan got through.
CHECK BACK TOMORROW FOR PART IV