Tim Cahill's late header earned Everton a 1-0 win over Wigan at the DW Stadium.
Toffees' rich vein of form continues
Tim Cahill's late header ensured Everton extended their unbeaten run to nine Premier League games at Wigan.
The Australian lost his marker and rose excellently at the front post to power home Leighton Baines' corner in the 84th minute.
On balance, it was no more than Everton deserved after Louis Saha had been denied a strong penalty appeal before the break.
The visitors had also had a goal ruled out in the second half when Marouane Fellaini was ruled offside after tapping into an empty net when Cahill had scrambled the ball into his path.
Wigan however, pressed forward after the breakthrough and almost bagged a last-gasp equaliser when Charles N'Zogbia's drilled shot from just outside the box cannoned off the crossbar.
Everton could have taken the lead in the third minute but Leon Osman was unable to control his shot properly after being teed up by Landon Donovan.
Steven Pienaar then tried his luck from the edge of the box after Louis Saha's lay-off but the South African saw his effort deflected over.
Cahill got a head to the resulting corner, but his looping attempt was caught comfortably by Vladimir Stojkovic, who was continuing to deputise in goal for Wigan in place of the injured Chris Kirkland.
Stojkovic then got down to block Cahill's close-range shot after the midfielder had connected with Phil Neville's pass first time.
The hosts had struggled to settle, but nearly took the lead after 20 minutes when Jason Scotland fed Hugo Rodallega, only for Tim Howard to rush out and parry.
Everton then looked to have gone even closer as Saha's effort hit Cahill and bounced off the post, but the assistant referee flagged for offside.
Play switched to the other end again as Rodallega put Jason Scotland through, but the former Swansea striker blazed his effort over the bar.
Philippe Senderos, on his Everton debut, then made a crucial intervention to take a cross away from Rodallega's path as he slid in on Howard's goal.
Saha, who was looking for his 100th league goal in English football, was having a busy time of it and his header from Baines' assist brought a fantastic fingertip save out of Stojkovic.
Fellaini was unable to guide his header on target from the corner that followed, but Everton were steadily taking control of the match once again.
The visiting fans screamed for a penalty as Gary Caldwell brought Saha down in the area moments later, but referee Lee Probert waved play on.
Scotland sliced a shot over in the 37th minute after stumbling through a crowd of defenders, but as the first half came to an end, it was Moyes' team looking the more likely to break the deadlock.
Only two minutes after the restart Everton had another chance to open the scoring as Mohamed Diame brought Pienaar down just outside the area.
Baines, who had scored a late winner against his old club in the reverse fixture, curled the free-kick towards the bottom left-hand corner but Stojkovic dived quick enough to push the effort away.
Wigan then thought they had won a penalty when Probert whistled after Heitinga barged into N'Zogbia, but replays showed that the challenge had occurred just before the midfielder entered the box and his subsequent free-kick went straight to Cahill.
Martinez threw on Paul Scharner in an attempt to give more impetus to his attack and the Austrian managed to get a toe to an Everton clearance in the 65th minute, but his effort rose well over the bar.
Scharner then failed to apply the required finish to a flowing move with 18 minutes to go, firing a shot straight at Howard after Scotland had squared to him.
Everton thought they had finally made the breakthrough a minute later as Stojkovic fumbled in the six-yard box to allow Cahill to cross for Fellaini.
The tall Belgian had an easy task to prod the ball home from just a few inches out, but his celebrations were soon cut short by a flag for offside.
It was looking as if Wigan might hold on for a point, and they might have had even more when Rodallega struck a free-kick which Cahill deflected away, ostensibly with his hand.
But with six minutes remaining it was Cahill who wrapped up victory for the Toffees, crashing home a header from Baines' corner.
N'Zogbia almost hauled Wigan level in added time, but his drive came back off the upright as the Toffees triumphed.
| Wigan Athletic |
Team Statistics |
Everton |
| 0 |
Goals |
1 |
| 0 |
1st Half Goals |
0 |
| 2 |
Shots on Target |
6 |
| 5 |
Shots off Target |
4 |
| 1 |
Blocked Shots |
1 |
| 4 |
Corners |
7 |
| 19 |
Fouls |
12 |
| 2 |
Offsides |
5 |
| 0 |
Yellow Cards |
2 |
| 0 |
Red Cards |
0 |
| 74.9 |
Passing Success |
72.8 |
| 24 |
Tackles |
20 |
| 79.2 |
Tackles Success |
60 |
| 53.9 |
Possession |
46.1 |
| 47.5 |
Territorial Advantage |
52.5 |
|
