Martinez upset after Bolton defeat but urges club to focus on Villa game
A disappointed Roberto Martinez explained that whilst Saturday's defeat to Bolton was upsetting the team must put the result behind them in order to compete against Aston Villa next week.
After being denied a penalty early on at the Reebok Stadium things went from bad to worse with Bolton running out eventual 4-0 winners, but the gaffer is confident his squad have the ability to bounce back on Tuesday night.
"It's a hard result to take, and it's a difficult day for us all," Martinez.
"We wanted to build on Monday's great win, and try to get that consistency we have been looking for all season.
"But key decisions went against us and we couldn't do that.
"I thought there was a key moment in the third minute when Hugo Rodallega was fouled and we should have had a clear penalty.
"If we had got that, it would have been a completely different game, but after that everything went against us and mentally we looked a little bit drained.
"We couldn't compete as well as we normally do and we have to make sure we rid ourselves of this feeling with a good performance on Tuesday night."
The gaffer went on to say how upset he was that the travelling 2,000 fans had little to cheer about on the day, but that it is imperative everyone associated with the club pick themselves up for the Villa game and the final nine games of the season:
He said: "Last Monday was a great advert for Wigan Athletic, which we all enjoyed, and we wanted to carry that on today.
"The support we received from the stands was magnificent and I'm just sorry we couldn't give them anything to cheer.
"The positives from today are the fact that nothing has changed from the rest of the season.
"We are capable of beating anyone on our day, but we just cannot find that consistency to build on what we do achieve.
"In football, it's important to respond and take responsibility for bad results, and we can do that by showing a reaction on Tuesday.
"It will be a tough end to the season for all of the teams down there. Every win will be difficult to achieve, which makes this result so disappointing.
"To beat a side like Liverpool shows what we are capable of, but we have to maintain those standards every week.
"Today we couldn't, and we got heavily punished. But it's about the reaction now and getting this feeling out of our bodies as soon as possible.
"We know this is a big fixture for the fans and it has been a big disappointment for them, but we have to look forward now and Aston Villa on Tuesday.
"Four games in 12 days is a huge demand on the players, and results like this can happen.
"It happened to Bolton last Tuesday, when they lost 4-0 at Sunderland, and their reaction was very, very good.
"We have to make sure we match that reaction against Aston Villa, and we'll be looking to get rid of this feeling as soon as we can."
