Shaun Maloney admitted Wigan made the last 15 minutes of the Sky Bet League One victory over Cambridge “more tense than it needed to be” after failing to make the most of their earlier dominance.
Goals from Stephen Humphrys and Thelo Aasgaard in the space of five minutes around the hour mark put Wigan firmly in charge at the DW Stadium.
The home side should have been ahead at the break, only for top scorer Charlie Wyke to fire against a post before he was denied in spectacular fashion by U’s goalkeeper Will Mannion.
A nervy finale ensued when, after Callum McManaman felled James Brophy in the box, Fejiri Okenabirhie reduced the arrears 14 minutes from time.
And although Wigan held on for the win, Maloney felt his side were almost their own worst enemy.
“It was probably a bit more tense than it should have been,” he said.
“But I guess that’s football, if you’re maybe not as clinical as the chances we had, especially in the first half.
“It was actually a very hard game, and it is very hard to stay patient when your opponent puts 11 players behind the ball.
“You have to be patient, and then when you get your chances, you’ve got to be clinical.
“There was a five-minute period when we went 2-0 up, and I felt we maybe became a little bit comfortable, we dropped our levels slightly.
“And as soon as it goes to 2-1 it’s game on and they can attack because they’ve got nothing to lose.
“But there was also a part of it I really like, at the end, when I see players putting their bodies on the line to not concede.
“I didn’t think we’d be in that situation, but there’s a real satisfaction I get when I see players really putting everything on the line for the team.”
For Cambridge head coach Mark Bonner it was almost a very good point on the road against a side he says “will be up there” at the end of the campaign.
“I thought it was a good game, both teams had plenty of chances,” he said.
“I was really pleased with how we started both halves, and how we finished, when we were chasing the game.
“Obviously Wigan defended their box great at the end and we couldn’t quite create, or make, one of those moments happen.
“I thought at the start of the second half we had enough moments to create some good chances and get ourselves in front in the game.
“But we haven’t stopped Humphrys cutting in off the wing and he’s hit it brilliantly.
“The second goal comes really quickly after that and that’s a tough for one for us as well, it’s poor defending really.
“We gave a really good account of ourselves, we created chances, but we were too erratic with them.
“We had a lot of attempts at goal, really good entries into the final third, but not enough of them worked the goalkeeper.”
Man United could be without Toone until new year, says Skinner
Marc Skinner revealed that Manchester United could be without midfielder Ella Toone until the new year after she picked up a calf injury in training.
Toone has featured in five games in the Women's Super League this season, but is yet to register a goal or an assist so far this term.
The 25-year-old has missed United's last two games and was not selected in Sarina Wiegman's England squad for their upcoming friendlies against the United States and Switzerland.
She had previously appeared in a staggering 96 straight matches before missing United's WSL showdown with Leicester City last weekend.
But ahead of the Red Devils' meeting with league leaders Chelsea on Sunday, Skinner confirmed they would be without Toone for not only that game, but for the foreseeable future.
"We have three games [after the international break and before Christmas]. There's always the hope, but I think you balance and you go, 'right, if we can get her back, we get her back'," Skinner said.
"But we're just not going to rush her in this moment because it's a calf injury, it's your running mechanism. If we injure the running mechanism, it takes longer.
"So ideally we'd like her back for those games afterwards.
"The projection is she misses this game [Chelsea], she misses the international window, probably misses the first game after that, and then we'll see from there.
"But because it is such a short block of only three games, we'll assess whether it's worth that or actually resetting to come back after Christmas."
Al-Nassr 1-2 Al-Qadsiah: Aubameyang winner ends hosts' unbeaten run
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang hit the winner as Al-Qadsiah inflicted a 2-1 defeat on Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League on Friday to end their 21-match unbeaten run.
Cristiano Ronaldo's seventh league goal of the season put Al-Nassr ahead, but Al-Qadsiah replied swiftly through Julian Quinones before Aubameyang struck the decisive blow.
The hosts drew first blood in the 32nd minute when Ronaldo slotted home after Al-Qadsiah goalkeeper Koen Casteels had spilled a routine catch from Talisca's cross.
However, Al-Nassr's joy was short-lived when Quinones brought down Turki Al Ammar's delivery five minutes later, with the Mexcio winger firing past Bento to level the scores.
Quinones also played a part in the winning goal after brilliantly turning the ball back across goal from Nahitan Nandez's search pass to tee up a simple finish for Aubameyang.
The result sees Al-Qadsiah move level on 22 points with third-placed Al-Nassr, with Al-Shabab also level with them.
Stefano Pioli's Al-Nassr are six points adrift of defending champions and leaders Al-Hilal, who also have a game in hand.
Vlahovic out of Juventus clash with Milan
Dusan Vlahovic will miss Juventus' trip to Milan in Serie A this weekend and is also a doubt for the Champions League game at Aston Villa, head coach Thiago Motta has confirmed.
Vlahovic returned from the international break with a muscle problem in his left thigh, and the manager, after he confirmed the Serbian's absence for Saturday's game at San Siro, was asked about his chances of playing on Wednesday at Villa Park.
"I don't know. He definitely won't be there tomorrow. We hope to have him back as soon as possible," Motta told a press conference on Friday.
"Injuries are part of football. Now it's Vlahovic's turn, but we'll keep playing with the same principles, attacking and defending together."
Vlahovic is the latest of Motta's injury problems at Juventus. Argentine winger Nicolas Gonzalez missed the last six league games and is still unavailable, while Poland striker Arkadiusz Milik is a long-term absentee.
Brazilian midfielder Douglas Luiz will also miss the game with Milan and defender Juan Cabal recently suffered an Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injury, the same issue which will keep fellow defender Gleison Bremer out for the rest of the season.
"I'm really disappointed for Cabal because, like Bremer, he'll be out for a long time," Motta said.
"This is another reason to push ourselves, to commit that bit more so that these absences don't weigh too heavily."
Juventus go into the game as the only unbeaten side in Serie A but find themselves sixth in the standings in what is so far a very tight title race, with just two points separating Motta's side from leaders Napoli.
"It's very balanced and this is good for both us and the public," Motta said.
"We must all try to continue like this. We have to try to get as many positive results as possible."
Milan are one place behind Juve but six points off Motta's side.
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