Phil Smith's verdict: Inside the afternoon Sunderland passed a major test - and gave their fans some welcome optimism

You can almost sense the bemusement, in amongst the delirium.

Make no mistake, they had travelled here out of loyalty and hope, rather than in any expectation.

Even if there is always a natural pessimism that comes built in with being a football supporter, it struck you on the way to this game that it was not just heart but head that was telling you that the Black Cats were likely to be outmatched, outplayed, outfought here.

For Sunderland, in League One, it was a sobering thought.

In the early weeks of Alex Neil’s tenure he had been searching desperately for a formula and a balance, but with injuries and a disjointed squad it was proving elusive.

And this was exactly the kind of occasion where too often this squad had fallen short this season.

A strong, physical opponent on home turf, a big crowd and an extra intensity.

Neil knew that, too.

Which is why in his pre-match team talk, he urged his players to prove first to themselves and then to everybody else that they could handle it, thrive in it.

Their response was a performance with a resilience that many had fairly doubted they were capable of.

In this season of dizzying extremes, the travelling fans were given something to hold onto again.

A goal inside two minutes made a major difference, a reward for a front-foot start and more set-piece excellence

It was a lift for those in the away end, but most importantly it played perfectly into Neil’s gameplan.

Though he reverted to a back four, the team sat deeper and offered significantly more protection in some of the areas where there have been struggles of late.

The front four were asked to do a major amount of running to protect their defence against a side who Neil knows punish you from wide areas and crossing into the box.

This was not a free-flowing Sunderland performance, where Wigan were carved open at will, but Neil never expected it to be.

It was pragmatic, and it was hugely effective.

After a period of intense turbulence and acrimony, it’s a platform. No more, no less.

“I thought we denied them, a lot,” Neil explained afterwards.

“They had one moment I think when we made the pitch long, Bailey played the ball down the channel and we weren’t set up behind it, they slipped [Lang] in and Patto made a really good save.

“That changed the dynamic of the game because in recent weeks, that’s damaged us.

“Equally we were probably more of a threat because we started deeper and were breaking into space, rather than being higher and coming onto the ball.

“All these little bits and bobs give me something to think about ahead of the games coming up.”

At the heart of the win was a major gamble on Neil’s part, and one that paid off handsomely.

In his pre-match press conference on Friday, Neil had said that though it was clear Callum Doyle needed a rest, he felt the team would be weaker without him.

Moments later, he praised Arbenit Xhemajli’s application in training but said any manager would have arrived at the same conclusion, that given his lack of competitive football it would be a huge ask to drop him in, to ask him to ‘drag us forward’.

On Tuesday night, he had gone even further in saying he didn’t feel he had another left-footed central defender in the squad.

But ongoing injury issues to Danny Batth and a minor hip complaint for Doyle, forced his hand.

Xhemajli was given the opportunity he had been craving and not for a moment did he look like letting it pass him by.

There were one or two nervy moments, yes, but aerially he was dominant and his decisions on the ball were excellent more often than not.

Wigan had anticipated dominating the physical battle, and instead they were never able to get a foothold. Josh Magennis, who has caused major problems for Sunderland when leading Hull City’s line, was withdrawn after an hour.

Sunderland will have to proceed carefully with Xhemajli, who ended the game with cramp and his ankle on ice, but they know now that in the Kosovan they have a fighter and a good footballer. It was the most timely of arrivals.

At half time, Neil had another challenge for his players: ‘OK you’ve done it for 45, have you got the steel to see it through?’

They did, and created the better of the chances as they broke with real threat. Neil timed his substitutions perfectly, Jack Clarke bringing added drive and legs just when the team needed it.

Sunderland also showed a very different side to their game and one that was welcomed by supporters, taking time out of the game and showing they can be streetwise when they need to be.

It will be lost on no one that this was supposed to be a match crucial in the race for the top two, and instead it was three points that served as a timely boost to Sunderland’s hopes of maintaining a place in the top six.

That tells you how far short the Black Cats have fallen of late.

But they needed to start somewhere, and there was a line in Neil’s post-match reflections that gave you some optimism: ”I don’t think fans are hard to please, if you do the basics really, really well and give everything you’ve got, they’ll back you.”

It sure is a good place to start, and that is what this timely win needs to be.

For the first time in a few weeks, Sunderland have something to hold onto, to build from.

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