Wigan win leaves West Ham in trouble

David Cotterill's first Barclays Premiership goal set Wigan Athletic up for a 2-0 victory at Upton Park which left West Ham United firmly in relegation trouble.

Hammers boss Alan Pardew brought Yossi Benayoun and Marlon Harewood back into the side following the weekend defeat to Everton, while Cotterill started for Wigan ahead of Henri Camara.

Wigan applied the early pressure and West Ham keeper Rob Green was forced to touch Paul Scharner's glancing header onto the post inside the first minute.

Hayden Mullins then undersold a back-pass to Green, whose clearance crashed off Lee McCulloch but went out for a goal-kick.

There were few touches of class in a scrappy opening but one of them almost created the opening for West Ham.

Harewood latched onto a neat through-ball from Nigel Reo-Coker, skipped one challenge and rifled his shot goalwards, forcing Wigan keeper Chris Kirkland into an athletic save.

West Ham were uncertain at the back and they had to scramble the ball clear after McCulloch's driving run forward attracted three claret and blue defenders.

James Collins was forced into a sliding clearance after playing himself into trouble inside his own box.

Harewood pressured Emmerson Boyce into conceding a corner and then urged the home fans to lift the volume.

But there was little to cheer as West Ham struggled to break down Wigan's high-pressure system.

When West Ham did piece together some meaningful possession they did look dangerous. Paul Konchesky swung in a teasing cross which was just too far ahead of Carlos Tevez, who came flying into the Wigan six-yard box.

The move lifted West Ham. Konchesky picked out Benayoun and the Israeli midfielder flicked a header forward to Harewood, who struck his shot on the turn just wide of the far post.

It was West Ham's best period of the game but they still lacked the confidence to play their way up field and all too often resorted to long balls forward.

When Matthew Etherington broke into the box, with three men to pick out and Tevez waiting for the cut back, he lofted an aimless cross straight out for a goal-kick.

Etherington's free-kick then forced Kirkland to punch Kevin Kilbane's uncertain header out for a corner. When the ball broke for Tevez at the far post it was just inches too far ahead of the Argentinian's outstretched leg.

Tevez raised the tempo after interval with a typical charging run into the Wigan box but his shot deflected on to the post and bounced clear.

West Ham then lost all shape at the back. Kilbane sold Collins a simple dummy and found Cotterill at the back post with a low cross.

Cotterill cut inside Etherington and curled his shot past Anton Ferdinand into the top corner.

Within seven minutes Wigan were 2-0 up after Baines' drive deflected off Spector.

Wigan could have been 3-0 up after Scharner rose unopposed at the far post to plant a header past Green - only for the linesman to rule the Austrian offside.

That may have been a marginal decision but the boos which rang out at full time were comprehensive.