Bolton Wanderers 0 - 1 Wigan Athletic

Zaki nets penalty

Updated: December 28, 2008, 4:22 PM UK

Amr Zaki steered Wigan to their second successive victory as they shrugged off a couple of injury setbacks to see off hosts Bolton 1-0.

• Bruce dreaming of Europe

The on-loan Egypt striker took his tally for the season for 11 goals after scoring from the penalty spot a minute before half-time.

Wigan then saw the game out and the victory was a tribute to their resilience and good organisation.

They lost goalkeeper Chris Kirkland to a groin problem in the warm-up and Mike Pollitt took the jersey.

But then they were hit with another injury blow when Emile Heskey limped off in the first half.

Wigan were good value for their victory, although Danny Shittu came close to equalising in stoppage time.

Bolton looked jaded after their efforts against Liverpool on Boxing Day when they suffered a 3-0 defeat and were jeered off at the end.

Wilson Palacios almost joined Kirkland and Heskey in the Wigan treatment room after a knee-high challenge by Kevin Nolan in the sixth minute.

Bolton pushed forward five minutes later but Johan Elmander cleared the crossbar with his effort following good work by Ricardo Gardner and Matt Taylor.

Wigan responded and Zaki got into a good position only to see his shot blocked by Andy O'Brien.

Play switched back to the other end and Bolton fans screamed for a penalty when Kevin Davies went to ground following a challenge from Paul Scharner as he shaped to shoot.

Davies did not protest and referee Phil Dowd allowed play to continue. TV replays then showed that Scharner had won the ball cleanly.

Nolan then tried his luck on goal in the 24th minute but his effort cleared the bar.

Wigan hit back in the 26th minute and Taylor picked out Emile Heskey but his touch was poor and goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen was able to make a save.

Six minutes later the visitors were forced to make another change when Heskey limped off and Henri Camara came on.

Camara was quickly into the action and fired in a shot from the edge of the area that the goalkeeper did well to turn around the post.

Wigan were beginning to dictate the pace of the game as half-time approached.

Jaaskelainen made another good block from Lee Cattermole in the 41st minute after a corner from Ryan Taylor.

Three minutes later Wigan made the breakthrough from the spot after Andy O'Brien's challenge on Camara.

Zaki stepped up and sent Jaaskelainen the wrong way to take his tally for the season to 11 goals.

Bolton hit back immediately but Nolan and Ricardo Gardner got in a muddle and Pollitt was able to take advantage and make the block.

The home side almost equalised in the 53rd minute when Shittu got on the end of a corner from Matt Taylor only for Palacios to clear his header off the line.

Then Elmander should have put Bolton level but the Swedish striker's close-range effort was parried by the stand-in goalkeeper.

Holding a 1-0 lead, Wigan were content to sit back and try and hit Bolton on the counter.

Bolton were finding gaps at the back and Gretar Steinsson rolled the ball across the face of the area to Taylor. But he hit a tired shot straight at Pollitt.

Bolton continued to chip away at the visitors with the clock ticking down and Davies was putting in a hard shift.

Shittu almost equalised in stoppage time but his header clipped the top of the bar and went out of play.

Bruce dreaming of Europe

Wigan manager Steve Bruce is daring to dream of European football after his side climbed to seventh in the table.

Bruce said: ''Anyone who has seen us will know it is no fluke we are in the top half of the division.

''Our aim is to stay there if we can. There a lot of big clubs down near the bottom so it is great for a side like ours to be punching above our weight.

''Bolton have done it (played in the UEFA Cup), Blackburn have done it. Why can't it be our turn?.

''In the calendar year we have taken something like 58-60 points. It is a fantastic achievement from the players but we are not going to get carried away.''

Zaki's 11th goal of the season came after Andy O'Brien had been penalised for a challenge on substitute Henri Camara.

Bruce offered a tribute to the Egyptian forward, who has had some anxious domestic business to attend to.

''The kid has had a tough time,'' said the Wigan boss. ''He has a sick child. We will continue to try to help him. Thankfully his daughter is now okay and that has put his mind at rest.

''He is getting back to his best and is strong as an ox. He has unbelievable energy levels.

''Amr's ended up with a bit of a lump on his eye but he can stand his corner.''

Bruce expects to be without goalkeeper Chris Kirkland (groin) and England striker Emile Heskey (hamstring) for the FA Cup tie against Tottenham on Friday through injury.

Kirkland pulled up in the warm-up and Mike Pollitt was drafted in even though Richard Kingson was on the bench.

Bruce added: ''We travel with three goalkeepers as Chris has a history of injuries although he has gone a year without missing a game.

''I picked Pollitt for his experience and he has come up with the goods. He is such a good lad he was training on the pitch even though he wasn't on the bench.''

Bolton kept chipping away with both Kevin Davies and Danny Shittu rattling the woodwork with their efforts.

Shittu also saw a goalbound header steered to safety by Wilson Palacios although manager Gary Megson maintained it was a goal

Megson said: ''You try to be objective as you can but we think the ball was over the line.

''We had what we thought was a legitimate goal turned down but we did not play particularly well.

''A lot of our well-known players did not perform. The best display came from Danny Shittu in terms of defending.

''Maybe tiredness set in during the last 20 minutes but we have to give credit to the opposition as they were really solid.''